You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart
by titeve79
Summary: Journalist, Elena Gilbert decides to write an article on the homeless people.  She goes undercover to live in the streets for the weekend.  After a homeless man saves her life, she invites him into her home. AU  Rated M just in case.
1. Chapter 1

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 1~

~~The Idea~~

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Elijah asked her. "It's going to be very cold. It might even snow."

Elena took a sip of coffee from her mug and looked at the sky from her office's window. A sigh escaped her lips. She knew it wasn't going to be easy. Especially since she was very sensitive to the cold in the first place, but her decision was already made. She was doing this.

"Yes, I'm sure." She said. "I want my article to be as realistic as possible. I have to do this. I have to know what I'm writing about. I don't want my article to be based on interviews only. I want to live it without peoples knowing it's me. I want their reaction to be real." she explained to her boss.

Elijah shook his head.

"It's very honorable of you to be this dedicated to your job, Elena, but it can also be dangerous for a woman like you. Alone in the streets" Elijah pleaded.

"I promise I'll be careful. I'll keep my phone hidden on me."

"You could go to the refuge center." he proposed.

"I thought about that, but I don't want to take the place of someone who's really in need of it." She took another sip of her coffee. "Besides, I made a lot of interviews there. Someone will probably recognized me."

"So, there's nothing I can say to make you change your mind?"

He already knew the answer. She was so stubborn. Just like her mother. He smiled at the thoughts. Elena and her mother were so much alike and not only physically. They both were sweet, generous, loyal with the people they loved. But they could be so stubborn. When they got in idea in their head, it was almost impossible to make them change their minds.

"I made up my mind, Elijah. I want to do this. I'm doing this." she said, her voice serious.

Elijah sighed and ran his left hand in his hair. Elena was her youngest employee and the fact that he knew her since she was a kid didn't help the situation. He really cared for her and he didn't want her to put herself in any danger for this job.

"Just promise me you'll be extremely careful and not do anything stupid."

Elena rolled her eyes in annoyance and huffed.

"I'm serious, Elena." he almost growled and Elena bit back her smile.

"Fine!" she said shaking her head. " I'll be extra careful and I'll try to pick a safe spot to camp myself. I mean it's not like I'm going to sleep in central park in New York! It's only Mystic Falls after all."

Elijah sighed for the tenth time today.

"You can never know, Elena. Bad things can happen even in small towns."

She knew what her boss was trying to do but there was no way in hell she would change her mind. This was her chance to prove to her colleagues that Elijah didn't hire her only because of his friendship with her mother. She was a good journalist and if she had to fight to prove it to the world, then that's what she'll do.

* * *

><p>Elena looked at her reflection in the full lenght mirror in her bedroom. She had put really old clothes. She made sure they were old, dirty and torn. God they were even smelly. Her hair looked like she battled against a tornado. She smeared some dirt on her face. She could really pass for a homeless woman.<p>

She looked by her window. Frost was beginning to cover it. The sky was gray. It was going to be a tough cold night. A very long night. For a second she thought about changing her mind. She took a deep breath, stood straight and stared at herself in the mirror.

"You are strong! You can do this! You'll get through this! Don't let the cold stopping you!" she said aloud to herself.

She took a final look at her reflection and with a sastified grin, she left her bedroom. She didn't eat since lunch because she thought it wouldn't feel the same experiencing the homeless life if she wasn't hungry. She wanted it to be as realistic as possible.

She crouched in front of her cats, Boone and Ian, patted gently their heads and kissed them. She put extra food and water in their bowls.

"I'm going to miss you, guys." she told her cats.

She grabbed her keys, took a last look at her house and turned off the lights. She locked her door and went to her car.

"Okay, it's time." she said out loud.

* * *

><p>She parked her car two streets away from where she wanted to spend the night. The freezing wind hit her face right away. The night was going to be like hell. A freaking long night. <em>You can do it! You can do it! You can do it!<em> She chanted to herself.

She made sure no one saw her and she walked to a spot between a coffee shop and a library. She was holding a sort of cup that would be used for money. Well, that is if people were as generous as they claimed to be. She promised herself to give back the money she would make to the refuge center.

After half an hour, people started passing by in front of her. Most of them stared at her and for a second she got scared that people recognized her. But she soon realized that what not the case. They were staring because they wondered what she was doing there. After a certain time they were just ignoring her. Only a few people were putting a bit of money in her cup.

Elena was taken aback by the way people treated her. Most of them looked at her with indifference, others with obvious jugment, some with disgust. She heard them whispering insulting things about her and she didn't know what to think. She wasn't use to it. People usualy loved her right away and she felt hurt. And to think that it was the way some people had to live there lives sadden her even more. Were people really that cruel and not care at all?

"Why don't you justs find a job like a normal person? We don't have to do it for you." a voice hissed passing in front of her.

A group of teenagers threw chips at her and ran away laughing. An old man almost spited on her shoes and another who totally looked like a pervert put a condom in her cup. Elena immediatly threw it away and wipped her finger on her coat.

That answered her question. People were cruel. She had to hold back her tears. It was like she was slapped in the face. And the temperature didn't help. It was getting colder every single minute. She stomped from a foot to the other in a feeble attempt to warm herself up. An old lady walked in front of her and gave her a sympathetic smile before entering the coffee shop. When the old woman exit back outside she walked to her and gave her a big cup of coffee with a warm sandwich.

Elena eyes widened.

"Here you go sweetie. Eat a bit and hang in there,okay?" the old lady said patting Elena's cheek softly.

"Thank you..." she managed to whisper.

A tear rolled on her cheek. The old lady smiled at her and walked away. Elena followed her with her eyes. So... There still was hope for humanity.

* * *

><p>A cold breeze blew in the air. Damn it! She hated the cold. Why didn't she thought about this article during summer? Right! Because it was going to be Christmas soon and she wanted to know how it felt to be alone... in the fucking cold, she thought when another blow of the wind hit her harder. It was starting to get late and darker and less and less people were passing in front of her. She took a bite of her sandwich. It felt so good. She decided to eat it right away before it cooled off. She then took a big sip of her coffee. She sighed in satisfaction at the warm filling of the coffee in her mouth.<p>

There was no one in the street. She look to her right and then to her left to make sure she was alone. She picked her phone and took some photo of herself that she could maybe use for her article. She put back her phone in her pocket. The air was more and more cold. Damn it! It could really snow! Maybe if she went in the alleyway between the two buildings she would be protected against the cold wind? She grabbed back her cup with money on the ground, held her coffee and walked in the alleyway. Not to far in it. Just enough to not feel the wind. She was getting tired from being on her feet for five hours. She looked in her cup. There was about five dollars in it. Five dollars for five hours in the cold. She leaned on the wall to rest a little. How in hell would she survive this night.

"Well, what have we got here?" a voice came from the street.

Her head snapped towards the sound. There was four drunken men staring at her. Oh no no no no, she started to panic. One man took a step towards her while the others blocked the alley. Elena was holding her coffee so tight that she could feel the hot coffee burning her fingers. The man lifted a hand and stroked her hair but she yanked it away from her.

"Hey..." he said. "No need to be like that, babe. I'm not going to hurt you." he disgustingly smirked.

She could hear the other men chuckling. There was no way she could escape on this side of the alley. Her only chance was the other side but she didn't know if she would be fast enough. The man gripped her shoulder and pinned her on the brick wall.

"Please don't" she pleaded.

The man roughly grabbed the side of her face and tilted it so he could nuzzle her neck. Elena was trying to escape the man but he was stronger.

"Yeah!" one of the others said. "Show her who's the boss, man" he cheered making all the others laugh.

Elena was disgusted. She was scared to death of what was happening. The fact that she could be rape by bastards in an alley never crossed her mind. Why in hell did she had this brillant idea again? Tears were now falling from her eyes.

"Please don't do this..." she cried.

"But I just want to keep you warm... It's a cold night." he said is voice hoarse.

He was now trying to caress her thigh. Elena wanted to scream but she was petrified. The man was pressing his hand to her mouth.

"Shut up!" he growled.

The other men got closer to her too. Her heartbeat was going so fast she thought she was having a heart attack. She wished it was one. The first man still had his hand on her thigh and one on her mouth. A second one was playing with her hair. She was more and more scared. Warm tears was rolling on her dirty cheeks.

"She's kind of pretty under all that dirt." the third man said.

"Yeah!" the fourth man told. "But I bet it's even better without her clothes on."

The four bastards bursted out of laughter. When Elena felt them all closer to her she wanted to die. She was so scared. She knew her chances of escaping were really thin but she had to try. She couldn't let them win without fighting. With a rush of adrenalin or whatever it was, she splashed her hot coffee in their faces and pushed the first man on the ground. She turned around and ran as fast as she could to the other side of the alley.

"You bitch!" the man growled. "Catch her! This bitch is going to pay for this!"

Elena knew she was running for her life. She looked behind her. They were getting closer. She stumbled on something and fell on her knees. She tried to get up but one of the man pushed her to the cold ground and turned her around on her back.

"Nooooooo! Stop!" she screamed.

The man straddled her waist to stopped her from moving. He slapped her hard on the face.

"Shut up! Bitch!"

Elena was still trying to escaped but the man was stonger than her. The other men were surrounding them.

"Hey... don't forget to share with us." one man chuckled.

Elena was crying and screaming. She tried to scrach the man face but he hit her again.

"Please stop." she begged. "Don't do this, don't hurt me." she begged.

The man didn't listen and leaned on her and kissed her neck.

"Arghhhhh! Help!" she screamed. "Somebody help! Noooooooooo" she cried.

The man was enraged.

"I told you to fucking shut up!" he yelled at her cupping her head and hit it on the ground.

Elena felt the pain first and then everything was spinning around her. She heard an other voice coming from somewhere.

"Leave her alone, you piece of shit!" a voice ordered.

The four man snapped their head to the man's voice. They were staring at him with disgust. He was clearly an homeless man.

"I think you should leave." one of the man said

"I said. Leave. Her. Alone." the dark man growled clenching his fist.

"Get rid of him." the man who was straddling Elena said to the others. "I'm going to keep this little slut warm for you."

Elena was still crying under him. She tried to move again but he was stronger than her.

She saw her good samaritan fighting with the three others men. He was strong enough to fight them for a while but when her savior fell on his back, Elena knew it was the end.

"Who's the piece of shit now? Huh?" one of them told him.

They were kicking into the man body nonstop. Elena even thought she heard the sound of bones cracking. The man was whimpering on the ground and he was spiting blood.

Suddenly, they all heard a police siren coming their way. The face of the man over Elena went pale.

"Shit!" he growled. "Come on guys," he said lifting Elena up and litteraly tossed her in the trash near the container. "Let's go. Leave those piece of trash together. They can die for all I care."

On that the four drunken men ran away leaving a crying and frightned Elena with her savior. Her head was still spinning but she manage to get up and walked to the man on the ground. She kneeled beside him and gently touched his shoulder. He jolted to the touched but when he saw it's was only the woman he wanted to help he relaxed instantly.

"Oh my God..." she cried. "Are you alright? You... You saved me..."

Elena couldn't stop crying.

"You're hu-urt... You ha-ave to g-go to the ho-os-pit-tal."

The man eyes widened in terror.

"No! No hospital." he tried to get up.

His whole body was in pain but he knew he didn't have any broken bones. He lift himself up and she did too. He made a step to leave but he lost his balance and if she didn't catched him he would have collapse. Elena put an arm around his wounded waist and held the hand he put around her shoulder. She could feel a wet mixture on her hand and she knew it was blood.

"Mister, I really think you need to go see a doctor." she said.

"I said no hospital. Just go somewhere safer." he told her between coughs.

Elena wondered why he didn't want to go to the hospital. But she really wanted to help her savior. She knew it could be dangerous, especially after what just happened, but she _needed_ to help him. Before she could stopped herself, she spoked again.

"At least let me help you."

The man gazed at her and Elena was mesmerized by his eyes. Could icy blue eyes be warm?

"I said no doctor..." he almost begged.

"No doctor, I promise."

The man looked at her confused.

"Can you wait here till I come back? It'll take no more then five minutes." she asked.

The man nodded and she walked away. He watched her exit the alley and turning left. He was waiting for her to come back. He surprised himself at counting the time. After ten minutes he lost hope. He thought she changed her mind and just left him. He felt abandoned. A feeling he knew to well.

He suddenly saw a car stopped in front of the alley. He saw a silhouette exiting it and walking towards him. He frowned when he recognized her petite frame. She had a car?

"I'm sorry. It took me longer than I thought it would. Are you ready?" she asked.

"Hum mmm" he mumbled.

She helped him walk slowly and painfuly to her car. She helped him sit in it and buckled his seat belt for him. She closed the passenger door and ran around her car. She sat in her seat and turned her key in the ignition.

"Where are we going?" he asked holding his growls.

He was obviously in pain. She looked at him biting on her lower lip.

"My house." she told him. "I'm bringing you to my house."

* * *

><p>AN: Hey! That was the first chapter of my second story. It was meant to be the third but since I'm struggling with the other one, I decided to publish this one instead. I hope I'll be able to update soon but since I'm still working on BID, I'm not sure where or when I'll find the time. :)

I hope you liked it. Don't worry the 'dark time' is pretty much over. I'm sure you all guessed who was Elena's savior.

Don't forget to review! Good or bad. It'll help me improve!

Take care!

Eve xo

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I still don't own Vampire Diaries. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	2. Chapter 2  The Start Of Something

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 2~

~The start of something~

The man next to her in the car was silent excepted for the growls of pain he tried to keep as low as possible. He was holding on his left side. He had troubles breathing. Elena was sure he had a broken rib or maybe many. His raven hair were dirty, greasy and long. They were almost touching his shoulder. He had a dark beard and his forehead was bleeding. There was lumps of dry blood stuck in his beard. He really looked bad. Elena didn't care, though. She didn't care what he looked like. She didn't care that he stank like old garbage. She didn't care about the fact that her passenger seat was going to be ruined with dirt and blood. The only thing she knew was that he was a hero. He tried to fight four men all by himself just to help her. He saved her. He was her savior. And now, she was going to save him. She didn't know how, but she promised herself that she would.

Elena's hands were clutching on her steering wheel. She was an emotional wreck at the moment. She refused to think of what would have happen if he didn't interfere. She was hit by a nauseous wave. She still could feel the men's hands on her.

She stopped her car at a red light. She turned to him. He seemed half-dead. Elena wondered if she should bring him to the hospital against his will. But she decided not to. She promised him she wouldn't and the least she could do right now was to respect his decision. Maybe she could make him change his mind in the morning.

She realized the light changed back to green when the car behind them honked. They both jumped at the sound. Elena pressed her foot on the gaz and the car finally moved foward. She saw him tense a little when he saw the hospital to his right.

"Don't worry... I promised you... We're not going there." she said softly trying to keep her voice from shaking.

He seemed to relax instantly. Elena wondered why he was scared to go. She kept driving for about ten minutes. She was finally home. She parked her car in the garage.

"We're here." she said touching his arm lightly. " Just give me a minute to unlock my door and I'll help you get in."

He nodded once staring at her with his piercing blue eyes. Elena only nodded back. She got out of her car and went to unlocked the door in the garage that was leading to her kitchen. She threw her keys on the counter and got back to her car. He was struggling with his seat belt.

"Here, let me help you."

She gently and slowly unbuckled his seat belt near his left hip. She accidentally stroked it by sliding back the belt and he hissed in pain. Elena bit her bottom lip and crinckled her nose. She felt so bad. She wanted to help him not hurt him. She barely touched him, that meant he must off been seriously hurt.

"I'm sorry." she whispered. "I'll be more careful from now on..."

Elena helped him turn himself on the seat. His legs were now out of the car. She bent a little in front of him and put his arm around her shoulder for support. She managed to lift him up gently wrapping her arm around his waist. She pushed on the door of her car with her heel to shut it and they walked slowly, step by step to the door.

They finally and painfully made it to the kitchen. She closed the door and turned the lights on. She led him to the living room and sat him on the couch. Then, she gently helped him removing his old jacket and his dirty boots. She helped him resting comfortably on the back of the couch.

"I'm going to start a pot of coffee and grab my first aid kit. Will you be alright for a few minutes?"

"Yea-ah." he chocked holding on his side again.

Elena gave him a worried look. What if he had internal bleeding? It could be really dangerous. She really had to convinced him to see a doctor.

"Okay," she said softly. " I'll try to make it quick."

She got up too fast and felt dizzy but she didn't let it stopped her. She had to help him. She ran in the kitchen and prepared the coffee. When the hot liquid started to fill the pot she ran upstairs in her bathroom to take the first aid kit she had under her sink.

The man's eyes were glued to the young woman's movements. Questions were filling his head. He was sure she was homeless. He saw her near the coffee shop for hours. He saw her asking for money. He saw her freezing. What was she doing there? Was it some kind of game? Why would someone want to do this willingly?

His questions stopped when he saw her getting down the stairs. She walked to him with a red bag, a bottle of pills and a glass of water.

"Do you have allergies or something?" she asked.

He shook his head.

"I only got Tylenol for the pain." she said. "I'm not sure how many I can give you but I'm sure that two won't be enough... I think I'm going to give you four..." she mumble more for herself than for him.

She put the pills in his hand and gave him the glass of water. He took them all and emptied the glass entirely. She just hoped she wouldn't be making his injuries worst than they already were. She took the glass back and looked at him with worries. The man couldn't stop himself and stared back. It's been so long since someone looked at him like that. Not with pity. Not with judgment or disgust. Just worries. Almost lovingly.

"The coffee must be ready. Do you want some?

"Yes... Ple-ease."

"Milk? Sugar?" she asked him.

"Blac-k." he cough.

She smiled warmingly at him and ran in the kitchen. She came back with a huge mug of of hot coffee for him gave it to him. He took a big sip right away.

"I completely forgot to ask you," she started. "Can you tell me your name?" she asked him softly.

He looked at her for a few seconds before he answered her.

"Damon..." he breathed and then cough.

He was coughing a lot and Elena was scared his lungs were injured. She sat next to him on the couch.

"Well, Damon. I'm Elena."

He gazed in her chocolate eyes.

"Light..." he whispered.

Elena wasn't sure she understood. Did he want her to shut off the light?

"I'm sorry?" she asked.

"Your name... It means 'light'" he said still gazing at her.

She smiled again. The most beautiful and warm smile he has ever seen... or received.

"Will you let me check your injuries, Damon.?"

"It's... It's just bruises." he said.

"I'm sure it is but I just want to be sure."

"You don't have t-"

"I want to." she cut him off gently.

Damon finally agreed to let her check his bruises. He watched her carefully lifting the hem of his shirt. He saw her eyes widen as she discovered the bruises. She gently and lightly touched his stomach. Damon tensed to her touch. It felt like a mix of many things. He felt the pain first of course, but he also felt like all the nerves in his body was electrocuted. His bloodstream felt like burning lava. It has been a very long time since a woman touched him like that. The concern in her eyes moved him. His thoughts were cut by her sweet and soft voice.

"Can you lift your arms?"

She slowly and carefully removed his shirt over his head. Elena could see his sides were covered in bruises. His left hip, the one she accidentally stroked in the car, was a deep and dark purple color. It was almost black. Elena felt a tear rolling on her cheek. The skin was cut in some places from the impact of too many kicks, but it didn't bleed anymore. She would have to clean them, though.

"I'm going to clean those wounds with water first." she said to him.

She got up from the couch and went to grab a hand towel from the kitchen and damped it under the faucet of the sink with warm water. She put a little of handsoap on it too. She sat next to him again and lifted the towel to his forehead.

"It might itch." she told him.

She lifted her hand to his forehead and gently wipped his face around the wound first. She tapped lightly on the cut to clean it. Damon didn't make a sound but she felt him stiffen. She continued cleaning his face, trying to take off the blood from his beard. Then, she started cleaning his left side. It was really the worst. She cleaned the cuts with the towel and after she was through, she did it all over again with antiseptic wipes. For the finition, she used those butterfly skin closures pansements she had in her red bag.

"Here you go. I'm done." she said. "I'm not sure I can do better than that." she smiled.

"Thank you." he said looking down.

"It's nothing, really. I should be the one thanking you, Damon." she said with a low and shaky voice.

He only shrugged avoiding her eyes. He was really underestimating was he has done tonight. Elena wanted him to know how grateful she was. She wanted him to understand that what he did was heroic. She owed him her life. She owed him everything.

She watched him lean foward and grab his mug on the coffee table. He took another sip of the warm liquid. He was probably hungry too, she thouhgt.

"So, I'm an awful cook but I'm really good at ordering pizzas." she said trying to lighten up the mood. "Would you like some?"

Damon kept avoiding her and looked down at his feet. He wasn't used to that kind of generosity and it made him feel uneasy and vulnerable. He was alone for a long time trying to look after himself the best he could. He never delt well with pity either, but with her, it was different. Maybe it was because when she was looking at him he felt human and not just a worthless hobo. An angel, he thought, she was an angel. How could someone want to hurt her? Rage filled his whole body at the memories of those bastards...

"Damon?" she asked worried. "Are you okay?"

He jumped and looked at her.

"Yeah, I'm sorry... I spaced out, I guess."

"I asked you if you wanted some pizzas?"

"I don't want to take advantage of your generosity. You did enough. I should go." he said grabbing his dirty shirt next to him and trying to get up.

"No please... You're not in condition to go back. Please stay... at least for tonight." she pushed him gently back on the couch.

To tell the truth, Damon was happy to be in the warmth of a house. Especially since it was a very cold night.

"I... hum..." he mumbled.

"Yes,Damon? What is it "

"I need to use your rest room." he said.

"Oh! Of course!" she said helping him get up.

The Tylenol he took seemed to be working because he was moving a little more easyly. She led him into the rest room that was in a corridor next to the kitchen. She opened the door for him.

"Here it is. I'm going to call The Grill to order a pizza. He nodded and closed the door. He didn't bother to lock it. He took a minute to look at himelf in the mirror. He grimaced at all the bruises. He knew it was bad but not this much. Then he thought that it could have been her. He felt the rage again. He did some things he wasn't proud of in the past, but he could never understand how a man could hurt or want to hurt a woman. Sick cowards! He growled to himself.

He got out of the rest room and found her in the kitchen. She didn't see or hear him coming back and he watched her carefully. She was sitting on a stool her elbows on the island, her hands on her face. She was holding her head and her shoulders were shaking. She was hoding back her tears. She raked her fingers in her hair and turned her head towards him. She jumped when she saw him and she quickly wipped her tears away.

"I didn't hear you..." she said. "I would have help you..."

She walked to him and helped him go back to the living room. The door bell rang at the same time and she she went to opened it. The smiling face of the delivery guy fell when he saw her. Elena frowned. She paid for the pizza and shut the door after the guy left. She brought the pizza in the living room and opened the box for him.

"It's pepperoni and cheese. I hope it's okay."

"It is." he said picking up a slice of pizza and took a big bite.

"Listen," she started.

Damon gaze lock with hers. He thought she was changing her mind. He tought she was trying to find an excuse to kick him out. He mentally prepared himself for rejection. At least he had one hour in this house to get warm and eat.

"I'm going to take a shower while you eat. I just... I really need one. Will you be okay alone?"

He nodded. He couldn't even talk. The feeling he had inside was undescribable. She didn't change her mind. She still wanted him to stay. He was in... awe.

* * *

><p>Elena entered her room and she locked the door. She walked to her bathroom and locked the door again. She knew it was crazy. She knew Damon couldn't get up stairs. She knew <em>he<em> wasn't going to attack her. She knew that. She looked at her reflection and the akward face of the delevery guy came to her. Her face was still smeared with dirt and with the trace of her dry tears on her cheeks it wasn't a pretty image. So that's why he looked weird, she thought.

She started the shower and undressed herself. She got in it and let the water rain on her. At first she was unmoving. She was just relaxing enjoying the hot water on her dirty skin. But relaxing also meant that her rush of adrenalin was fading. The memories of the night played too well in her head like bad movie. She started to shake. She grabbed her loofa and srubbed her skin. At the memory of the man touching her thigh, she scrubbed it so hard that drops of blood appeared on it. A whimper of pain escaped her and she let herself fall on her knees. She sat on the shower floor and brought her knees to her chest. She circled her legs with her arms and rocked herself sobbing. She didn't know how long she had been in there but when she felt the water turning cold, she got out.

She put a flanel pajamas pants with a light purple tank top and she put a hoodie over it. She picked up a pillow and a blanket and left her room and got back downstairs to the livin room.

"I brought you these." she said putting them down next to him. "If you're doing better tomorrow, I'll help you go upstairs so you can take a shower."

"Tha- that'd be great. Thank you."

Elena smiled at him but it faded away quickly at the sight of his hip. It was worst than earlier. It was bigger and the purple color was even darker.

"Oh my God! I should've put some ice on that!"

Before he could even talk, she ran in the kitchen and picked up a bag of frozen peas in the freezer. She came back in the living room and layed him gently on the couch. She placed the pillow under his head. She covered him with the blanket and placed the bag of peas on his hip. This way the cold would help calm the pain but it wouldn't be too uncomfortable on his bare skin.

"Thank you." he said looking intently in her chocolate orbs.

She stared back at her savior.

"You're welcome Damon."

* * *

><p>The next morning Elena woke up from a very bad sleep. She had trouble falling asleep and when she finally did she had nightmares over nightmares. Her migraine wasn't helping either. She ran her hand in her hair and felt a bump on the back of her head. She walked to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She was surprised to not see bruises on her cheek because the man hit her pretty hard. She could fell her bump pretty well though and she was nauseous and felt really dizzy.<p>

"Crap..." she mumbled. She wasn't an expert but she knew that her symptoms could be a result of a concussion. As on cue, her nausea got worst and she emptied the remaining of her stomach in the toilet "Damn it!"

She brushed her teeth and rinced her mouth. She got dress quickly but slowly made her way downstairs. She saw Damon was still sleeping. He looked so peacefull... She didn't want to wake him up. But she really needed to go to the hospital. She decided to write him a memo and put it on the coffee table. She knew it wasn't safe to let a stranger alone in her house but she didn't care.

She called a taxi with her cell. She was way to dizzy to drive. She locked her door leaving Damon sleeping on her couch.

* * *

><p>She payed the driver and entered the ER. She explained the nurse at the reception why she was here and she was told to go sit in the waiting room. They told her it shouldn't be too long. And it didn't. She waited only five minutes.<p>

Another nurse led her to an examination room. She gave her one of those blue robe that you attached in the back and told her to change.

"The doctor will see you soon." the nurse said politely before she left the room.

Elena changed an sat on a chair. A few minutes later, a man in a white blouse, he was in his late fifty, entered the room. He was reading a folder. He closed it and looked at her.

" Elena?" he asked with surprised in his voice.

"Goodmorning, Doctor Salvatore.

* * *

><p>AU: I finally finished this chapter! I'm not so sure about it though. I'm afraid it was a bit boring. I hope you still liked it. I'm sure you now have a tiny idea why Damon didn't want to go to the hospital? Yep! Papa Salvatore is a Doctor!

More Delena moments are coming next! I'll try to update soon but I can't make any promises.

You can make me happy by leaving a review!

A very merry Christmas to everybody!

Take care

Eve xo

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smtih, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	3. I Will Try To Fix You

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 3~

~I will try to fix you~

Elena stared at the man who used to be one of her father's friend and colleague. Giuseppe Salvatore was a famous neurosurgeon that used to work in New York and California. He was highly respected and greatly reputed in the medical world. He came back in Mystic Falls five years ago when his second wife was killed in a plane crash in the Pacific. His decision to come practice his medicine in a hospital as small as Mystic Falls suprised everyone. Giuseppe was also the father of her friend Stefan that she met when she was majoring in journalism while Stefan was attending law school. They dated for a while but it was obvious that their love for each other was in fact a great friendship. They decided to break up and be friends instead. Stefan was now engaged to her sandbox best friend Caroline.

"Elena? I hope you're not here for something too serious." Guiseppe said.

"I'm here to make sure it's not."

"Okay, let's check that. First, tell me what brought you here."

"It's nothing really..." she said nervously.

Giuseppe let out a small chuckle.

"Well, since _I'm_ the expert, why don't you let me decide if it's nothing or not."

Elena nodded looking down at her hands on her lap.

"Yesterday I bumped my head really hard and this morning I felt really dizzy. I had nausea and I vomited twice." she started.

"You think you have a concussion?" he said more as a fact than a question.

"Could it be possible?" she asked.

"Yes it could. You did a great thing by coming here. I'm going to examine you. I'll run some tests and ask you more questions and then we'll know."

Elena shifted on her chair. She wasn't ready to answer some of his questions. Some specific questions.

"First of all," Giuseppe started. "Can you tell me how you fell?"

That was just great. Of all the questions she didn't want to answer, he had to ask _the one _first.

"It's really embarrassing, actually. I... I was in the shower and... I saw a...a spider... and I panicked. I rushed out the shower and slipped on the floor. And the last thing I know is that I'm on the floor and hit my head on it." she lied.

She inwardly chastised herself. What the hell was she saying? She felt even more stupid now. She just hoped Giuseppe would buy her fake story.

"Must have been a very disgusting one, huh?" Giuseppe chuckled.

"Aren't they all?" she forced herself to smile.

Giuseppe brought his hands to her head and slowly started to feel her skull. She flinched when he touched the big bump on the back of her head.

"Hmmm, that's a big bump..." he said. " Okay, you told me it happened yesterday?"

"Last night." she nodded. "About twelve hours ago actually."

"Okay. Did you have any loss of consciousness?"

"I don't think so." she frowned.

Giuseppe raised and eyebrow.

"You're not sure?"

"I felt really dizzy when I hit my head but I'm pretty sure I didn't have any loss of conciousness."

"Okay then. Any loss of short-term memory?" he asked

She shook her head. "No."

"Okay, that's good. Any Perseverating?" he asked.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Did you repeate the same thing over and over again, despite being told the answer each time?"

"Oh! No." she answered.

"But you had nausea and you vomited, right?"

"Right, twice."

"Did you ever have a concussion in the past?"

Elena shook her head.

"Blurred vision?"

"Only when I hit my head. It didn't last long."

"So... I'm pretty much finished with my questions for now. I'm going to run some tests.

"Okay."

"I'm going to start by checking your reflexes. Then I'll check for any neck injuries or whiplash that are the most common with head injuries. "

Elena nodded.

"Then I'm going to examine you for any ears or nose bleeding. It obvious that you don't have bruising around the eyes but I'll look more behind your ears. You don't seem to have any lacerations either but I want to make a CT scan. With this, we'll see if you have bleeding under your skull or within the brain tissues itself. Did you understand everything I said?"

"Yes, I did." Elena said.

"Don't worry, Elena. I'm pretty sure it's nothing. Those tests are just precaution, okay?"

"Okay." she smiled looking down.

"Let's start, then." Giuseppe said.

* * *

><p>Damon was still comfortably lying on the couch in Elena's house. Not that sleeping on a couch was the most comfortable thing in first place but it was better then sleeping on the cold ground behind a smelly container. He was between a sleeping state and awaken one. More likely, he was awake but refused to open his eyes. He didn't want the dream to stop. Because it had to be a dream. This couldn't be real. It felt real though. His whole body was still aching but something just felt so good. For once, he wasn't cold. His back was resting on something soft and comfy. Something was covering him and kept him warm. A marvellous sent was pleasing his nostrils. The sent of heaven. The sent of an angel, his angel. He unconsciously clutched the pillow beneath his head and pressed it against his face inhaling deeply.<p>

He reluctantly opened his eyes slowly, blinking a few times. He was meet by two pair of eyes. Two cats were sitting on the coffee table and staring at him with curious wide eyes. One of them, the black one, was sitting on the cold box of pizza from last night. The other one, he was a caramel colour, was stomping on a piece of paper.

Damon tried to sat on the couch too quickly and was hit by a wave of pain that made him growled loud. The cats ran away fast at the sound and the paper fell on the wooden floor. It almost made Damon chuckle. He carefully swung his legs off the couch and sat comfortably on the back of it. The house was silent and he wondered if _she_ was still sleeping upstairs. He didn't know if he should wait for her or leave right now.

He saw his shirt on the armrest of a chair. He tried to get up but his hip hurted like hell. It was almost black but at least it wasn't swollen anymore. The improvised ice of last night had helped a lot. He succeeded in standing up and stretched his arms and shoulders. He rubbed the back of his neck and made a step foward. His foot stepped on the paper on the floor. He bent and picked up the paper. It has his name on it. He frowned and unfolded the paper.

_Dear Damon,_

_If you're reading this, it's because I did not come back yet. I hope you've slept well and that you're doing better. I had to go somewhere this morning but I want you to wait for me. Please don't leave before I come home._

_I've put the Tylenol bottle and a glass of water on the end table beside the couch. Feel free to take some if you're still in pain._

_I shouldn't be gone for long. Make yourself at home._

_Elena_

_P.S. : If you want, there's coffee in the kitchen if you can get some by yourself._

It was a good thing he was alone because he felt like crying and he wasn't one to cry. But at this moment, his blue eyes were wet and there was a lump in his throat. Damon couldn't remember the last time he felt this way. He couldn't even remember the last time he felt, period. This perfect stranger cared about him in one night more than anyone did in his entire life. He had to sit again. He took the bottle on the end table and picked another four pills in his hand. After contemplating them in his hand he decided to take only two. He put back the other pills in the bottle and emptied the glass of water.

Damon took a look at his surroundings. The living room was nicely decorated. It wasn't luxurious but it was obvious that she had money to afford that kind of place at her young age. This was a big house. It got him to wonder again what on earth was she doing in the streets.

He sighed again and got up slowly. He made a few steps to test the pain and when he felt he could walk he slowly made his way into the kitchen. A warm coffee would actually be good. There was mugs on the counter and a warm pot of coffee from last night. Before pouring himself coffee Damon walk to the rest room that was near the kitchen.

* * *

><p>Elena just finished put back her clothes on behind the pale green curtain when Giuseppe came back in the room. She slided the curtain and looked at him anxiously. The smile on his face made her relax.<p>

"So..." she began. "Is your smile for a good news?" she asked.

"It is." Giuseppe smiled. "The CT scan didn't show any damages on your skull or brain."

Elena sighed in relief.

"I don't have a concussion?"

"You don't. You still need to rest though. Take a few days off from work. Stay home and relax. The bump will fade within a few days, maybe a week. You can take your usual migraine relievers for now and if it's not enough, just call me."

Elena bit her lower lip. There was something she wanted to ask him but she didn't want to betray Damon. Giuseppe noticed the hesitation on her face.

"Is there something your not telling me?" he asked her.

"I... have a friend..."

"And?" Giuseppe insisted.

"Well he," she cleared her throat.

"Elena, just tell me. You have a friend, and?"

"He got up into a fight and got hurt pretty bad but he refuse to come to the hospital. I was afraid he had an internal bleeding or something..."

The man shook his head

"Elena," he sighed. "You really should choose your friends more carefully." he said.

"There's nothing wrong with D- with him."she said. "He was attacked, none of this was his fault."

"Then why doesn't he come here?"

Elena eyes widened.

"Maybe he's just afraid of doctors or needles or whatever."

"Elena, that's ridiculous." he scoffed.

"Well, look where my fear of spiders got me. Guess I'm just as ridiculous as him then."

Elena felt the urge to defend Damon. If only Giuseppe knew what really happened maybe he would stop being such a judgmental freak. She often wonder how her father could have become friend with a man like Giuseppe. They were so different, as two different extremities. Like the North Pole and The South Pole.

"I'm sorry,Elena. I didn't mean to offend you or upset you. You're like a daughter to me... "he said. "This friend of yours," he continued. "Was he able to eat or drink? Did he vomited blood? Lost conciousness?"

"He ate pizza and drank coffee the night it happened and he took some Tylenol."

"If he had internal bleeding he wouldn't have been able to. And since he refused to come here he would probably be dead right now because internal bleeding are extremely dangerous."

Elena was shocked. The idea of Damon dying because of her sent a wave of guilt in her gut. All she wanted to do at this instant was rushing back home and take care of him. She made a promise to herself. She sweared she was going to fix him.

"So you think he should be fine?"

"I still think he should get a check up, but yes, he should be."

* * *

><p>It was ten thirty when Damon heard a key in the door lock. He was sitting on the couch and was struggling with the tv remote. Elena got into the living room with a bag from the drugstore in her hand before he could turn off the television. He looked so sheepish at this moment, like he's done something terrible he wasn't allowed to do. Like a toddler caught with his hand in the cookie jar just before dinner. The thought made Elena smile and she put the bag on the coffee table.<p>

"I'm s-sorry... I thought I could wa-"

"Damon, please. Don't apologize for watching tv. It's nothing, really. Didn't you get my memo?" she asked and he nodded. "Then you know I told you to make yourself at home."

He nodded again and she could see a light curl on his lips going up. Elena noticed he had put his shirt back on so she couldn't see his injuries.

"How are you feeling? Are you still hurt?"

His first thought was that she just couldn't wait to get rid of him and kick him out of her house but then he saw the worries on her flawless angelic features. She really cared...

"It still hurt but nothing I can't stand or bear with."

"That's good! That's another good news today!"

Damon frowned. Did he miss something? Sensing his question, Elena went to sit next to him on the couch.

"I wasn't feeling well this morning and I had to go to the hospital." she said slowly.

Elena could almost see the panic on his face and she saw his body tense.

"I thought I might have a concussion because of my symptoms and because of las-last night..." she said. "But apparently I'm going to be fine. My CT scan was good."

The truth was she was already feeling better. At least physically. Now that she knew she would be alright it would be better. The nausea was gone completely and her dizziness was fading gradually.

Mentally was a different thing. She wished she could just erase the whole living nightmare from her memory.

"I'm glad you're okay." he said looking down. "I... should go now, I don't want to take more of your time..."

He was about to get up when Elena quickly put her hand on his. He felt her warm skin on his, heating his whole body up. His blood started boiling again to this simple innocent touch.

"Please don't go... Stay here." she pleaded. "Unless there's some place you need to be?"

She was kidding, right? Where the hell could he need to go? But staying here, with _her. _Could he do it? It was to good to be true. He had to misunderstood what she said.

"Stay here, Damon." she repeated and squeezed his hand harder. "At least untill you're completely healed.

"But I'm f-fine. He said I can go. I don't want to-"

"Please." she insisted boring her doe eyes into his blue orbs.

Damon gulped and nodded before he offered her a shy smile.

"Thank you" he breathed.

"No, Damon. Thank _you_."

And before he could realize what was happening, she took him into her arms and hugged him tightly. Damon froze in shock. He just stood there on the couch unmoving, his arms like two straigth pickets each sides of his body. God he wished he could hug her back, wrap his arms around her and press her against him. He breathed in her hair. She smelt so good. It was driving him insane. He was about to do it when she finally let go of him. She smiled a genuine smile at him.

"So, you'll stay?" she asked again.

"Yes."

"Great! That's wonderful!" she said. "Do you think you can climb the stairs?"

"I guess so" he said frowning.

"Good! So I'll prepare a room for you and then you can shower if you want. Okay?"

She didn't let him answer. She got up on her feet and ran to the stairs leaving an even more startle Damon behind. He ran a hand in his dirty hair. A room, for him. A shower. A hot shower. Not those five minutes one you get in a center for homeless once in a while with barely warm water. No. A real long and hot shower. It would feel so good.

* * *

><p>The stairs climbing was more difficult than he thought but with Elena's help he managed to arrive to the next floor in one piece. He could still feel her soft and warm hand around his waist when she helped him upstairs.<p>

He was now sitting on a bed that used to be her brother Jeremy. She told him that her brother was studying arts in California and would't be home for a while. He even had his own bathroom. One that he was sharing with her. All they needed to do when one of them was using it was locking the doors so the other wouldn't walk in on the other.

He heard a knock on the door.

"May I come in?" he heard her sweet voice ask.

He cleared his throat.

"Of course." he said. "It's your house..."

She opened the door and walked in.

"Yes, Damon. But it's your room for now. It's private." she answered slimply.

She dropped a plastic bag beside him on the bed.

"I got this for you when I was out this morning. It's just a few things you might need."

Damon looked in the bag. There was a toothbrush and toothpaste, a razor and shaving creme. He took the Axe gel shower bottle in his hands.

"If you don't like the smell, I can just change it. It's not a problem."

"No, no! It's good. I like it!" Damon said quickly.

The last thing he wanted was to sound picky. He didn't know how to deal with this woman's generosity.

"It's just... It's too much..."

Elena shook her head.

"No, it's not. You deserve it, Damon." she told him. "Plus," she added, " I thought you'd prefer something a bit more masculine than roses and jasmine." she giggled.

"To be honnest I wouldn't mind smelling like baby powder." Damon said. "Just to be able to take a real shower is already something."

"Of course. I'll leave you to your shower, then. Take all the time you need." she said. " I'll put some clean clothes on the bed for you. It used to be my brother's but they should fit. I think there's some socks and some boxers he never used in that drawer." she pointed to a big chest on the wall and blushed a little.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome" she smiled and left th room.

* * *

><p>Elena was in the kitchen. She prepared a fresh pot of coffee and opened the fridge. Thank God she had some left over from her dinner with Stefan and Caroline. She picked the chicken parmesan that Stefan cooked for the three of them and put it in a pirex in the oven to reheat it. She put some water in a cauldron and took the box of rice in the cupboard. She could cook rice, right?<p>

She was preparing a salad with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and kalamata olives. She was really pleased with herself. The salad looked great and she manage not to overcook the rice. The chicken smelt so good and was ready. She had to thank Stefan for the chiken because his recipe was just the best.

She heard Jeremy's, now Damon's, door open and close. She heard him climbing down the stairs slowly. She put the salad on the table and turned to the counter. She open the cupboard in front of her and picked two plate.

"Hey..."

"Hey, Damon! Your just in time. Please sit down. Lunch's ready." she said her back at him.

She took the two plates on the counter and turned around. Her jaw dropped to the floor as the plates she was holding slipped from her hands.

"Oh my God!" she gasped.

* * *

><p>AN: Hey! I'm so sorry for the time it took me for update this story. I was struggling with time since I'm writing four stories at once. Between work and life itself, I got lost a bit. But I'm back!

There wasn't too many things in this chapter so I hope you're not too disapointed with it. This story started a little before the holidays so they might celebrate Christmas even though we're in february. I think a mistletoe kiss would be great... Cliché, but hey, it's a kiss, right? We'll see what will happen to those two.

I think in the next chapter Elena will have some explaination to give to Damon. Anyway, now that Damon officially leaves there for a while, that just means more Delena moments!

Once again I want to thank everyone of you that gave a chance to this story. Please leave a review :)

Take care

Eve xo

P.S: I just saw the pictures for EW magazine! OMG Ian and Nina naked on a bed... What's more to say...

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	4. You Are Safe

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 4~

~You Are Safe~

Elena was standing in her kitchen with widened eyes. Her mouth was opened and refused to close itself. For a second she thought a stranger just entered her house without her noticing. The man before her was just simply not the same she brought home last night. He was just... just so... She cleared her throat and made a step foward. Her foot stepping in the plates made her remember she dropped them. They were broken in many pieces. She quickly knelt down to pick up the pieces.

"I'm sorry" he said sheepishly. "I didn't want to scare you." he apologized.

He walked as quickly as his aching bruised body allowed him and crouched in front of her swallowing back his pain.

"Let me get this. It's-It's my fault." he stuttered.

If it wasn't for the velvet of his voice she didn't think she would have recognized him. His black raven hair was now cut shorter but still had some lenght on the top of his head. It was the perfect hair cut for a man. It was short, but long enough to lose your hand in it and grip on some of the locks. His hair was still damp from the shower. You could see some of the bruises on his face. His eyes so blue, so intense were looking at her with a mix of many emotions. He was wearing her brother's clothes. They were a bit loose on him but it still looked good. Though his body was thin for a man she remembered his chest and arms were still muscular. He probably found a way to train in the street; doing sit-ups and push-ups maybe? He didn't look like what you could imagine from a homeless man. He didn't reak alcohol, he wasn't holding for his life around a bottle of cheap alcohol, he didn't looked like a drug addicted, a pervert or whatever people usually think of them. Most people were judging without even knowing what they were talking about. When she was looking at him all she could see was a broken man. A man that needed help to fix his life.

"Damon, no. It's not your fault. You just surprised me, that's all." she said softly.

Elena didn't know what to do. Witnessing so much vulneribility on a man was something she couldn't think was possible. The way he was always looking at her was disturbing her. Not in a wrong way, no. It was like she was praised and she could almost see adoration in his eyes. That's what was disturbing her because she didn't feel she had done anything deserving that kind of awe. Not after what _he_ did for her.

She looked at him, her eyes meeting his. He was trying to pick the shattered pieces on the floor. She couldn't help to think how beautiful this man was. His features were flawless; from his intense blue eyes to his prominent cheekbones. From his sculpted chin and jawline to his full lips. He was the pure definition of gorgeous and handsome but he was also good. She knew he was just by the way he risked his life for her against those four bastard. Her body tensed at the reminder but she took a deep breath and relaxed. She put her small hand on his.

"Just go sit at the table." she said with a soft voice. "I'll clean quickly and we can eat just after."

She helped him get up on his feet and he went to sit at the table. He watched her clean the floor and throw the shattered plates in the garbage can. She picked two more plates from the cupboard and placed them on the table.

"Just start with the salad while I bring the rest." she told him and he nodded.

Damon served himself a big portion of salad and put some in her plate too. He took a huge bite of it while he watched her taking a pirex pan from the oven. It smelt like chicken parmesan. She brought the pirex to the table and placed it on a wooden cutting board. She walk back to the counter and put the rice in a serving bowl and brought it to the table.

She sat across from him with a little sigh.

"Here you go! Dig in!" she said smiling. "It should be good; I didn't cook the chicken." she giggled.

He chuckled a little and his eyes lit up a bit.

"I'm sure your cooking isn't that bad." he said slowly, almost shyly. "The salad's good."

Elena felt some kind of pride she couldn't explain. It's was just a stupid salad. She'd just tossed some vegetable in a bowl for crying out loud! But she couldn't stop the heat of her blushing cheeks.

"Thank you, Damon."

He smiled back at her and took a bite from his chicken and he frowned. Elena noticed right away and she leaned down to smell the meat in her plate. Was something wrong with it? She took a bite of it but it tasted good. She look at him questionably.

"Is something wrong, Damon? If you don't like it I-"

"No no no! It's good!" he said quickly. "It just... reminded me of my mother." he said looking down at his plate. " I didn't mean to offend you. It' s really good."

"Your mother?"

"Hmm mmm" he said his mouth full. "That was my favorite when I was a kid. She used to cook this for me all the time to cheer me up. It just taste the same as hers."

"Is she... alive?" she asked slowly, she didn't want to sound nosy.

She knew instantly the answer to her question just by the look on his face. The light in his eyes faded slowly just like his smile.

"No." Damon barely whispered.

She put her hand on his and he looked at her surprised.

"I'm sorry Damon... I... know what it is to lose a parent."

"You lost your mother too?"

"Yes... and no."

He frowned. Her answer didn't make any sense to him. What did she mean? He kept staring at her while he took another bite of chicken. God, it really tasted like his mother's.

"Five years ago, my parents were in a car accident. My father didn't make it. My mom survived but... she never woke up. She's in a coma since that day. She's still here physically but..." she sighed. "Okay, let's change the subject. No more doom and gloom for today!"

Damon nodded. They kept eating in silence for a while. He was just enjoying his warm meal and the roof over his head and must importantly his angel's compagny. He would enjoy every single second of everything while it last.

He discreetly watched her playing with the food in her plate. Her long chestnut hair falling on her left shoulder. Her brown doe eyes looking at him without the disgust he often meet in others. The way she always smiled at him genuinely like he was important or worthy.

Elena caught him stare at her and she could feel her cheeks warming up.

"Is something wrong, Damon? Do you need anything?"

"No, everything's good. I haven't had something this good in a long time." he said with a sad smile.

"Enjoy it then." she told him. "See my kitchen as an 'All-you-can eat' place." she joked.

"Maybe that's a dangerous thing to say to someone like me." he chuckled.

"I'm not afraid of you, Damon."

"Maybe you should." he said. "Maybe I transform into a bloody monster at night" he joked.

"I'd say more into a super hero." she replied.

Damon smiled at her but at the same time he wanted nothing more than to kick himself for making her remember the past night. It was a night he wished never happen at least for her part. For him on the other hand was a complete other story. Sure he was hurt like hell but it led him to her. He felt bad to see good in what happened but he couldn't help to be grateful for crossing her path.

"I'm sorry." he said. " I didn't mean to bring last night up."

"It's okay, Damon. You saved me last night. I owe you."

"I don't deserve this much, Elena. The food, the bed, your house, the clothes and all... I don't deserve it-"

"I think you're underestimating what you did for me." she cut him off. " You deserve it, you deserve this. I want to help you. It's the least I can do."

He looked at her and smiled lightly.

"Thank you." he breathed.

They finished their meal in silence.

* * *

><p>They were sitting in the living room on the couch. Her cats were both sleeping on Damon's lap and he was petting their heads gently. Elena giggled at the sight. Usualy man weren't to much into cats; at least the man in her entourage weren't. She was surprised too because her cats didn't like strangers and only let her petting them. Not even sweet Caroline could approched them.<p>

"They like you." she said. " Usualy they just go hide when there's someone else in the house. They get scared easily."

"What's their names?" he asked looking at the cats curled on his lap.

"Boone and Ian."

"Boone? Ian?" he chuckled.

"What? It's cute!" she replied between giggles.

"It's just that Boone makes me think of a dog, not a cat. You know the kind of puppy that follows you everywhere."

Elena shrugged but smiled.

"I just thought the names were cute."

"Where did you get them?" he asked curiously.

"On my porch. They were stray cats. When I looked at their cute adorable face I just could resist." she said smiling. "Poor cute little things, all alone in the streets."

Damon tensed at her words. Was that why she invited him in her house? Because she pitied him? Well he didn't deal with pity. Never has, never will. What was he? Some kind of experiment for some rich girl that didn't knew what to do with her time?

Damon put gently the cats aside on the couch and got up on his feet. Elena knew all along she just said something very wrong and she clapped her hand on her mouth.

"Damon, wait!" she said panicking. "What I just said... just came out all wrong!" she pleaded.

"Thank you for everything, Elena. But I think it's best for me to leave. I'm not some 'poor cute little thing' you can save."

Elena gripped on his arm.

"Please don't go... Stay."

Elena was freaking out at the moment. In only a few seconds she ruined everything. Of course he wasn't some poor cute little thing. He was gorgeous the voice in her head was screaming at her. But that wasn't important, right now. She could praise his gorgeousness later.

"Damon,please."

The hand on his arm slide down until it reached his hand. She gave it a slight squeeze and Damon bit his lower lip when she wrapped her other arm around his shoulder and hugged him. What was with her and her fucking hugs, he thought. She finally let go of him and made a step back.

"I'm sorry" he said. "I just don't like being pitied."

"Of course. That wasn't my intention. I was really just talking about the cats, Damon. I just didn't choose the right words. I'm sorry if I insulted you. That was unintentional. I always speak too fast and I don't think before I-" she had to catch her breath. "say something." she finally said. "It wasn't pity."

Damon took a deep breath. She looked so sincere.

"I overreacted, it's my fault. I'm just not use to genuine generosity."

"Can we restart that conversation from the beginning?" she asked.

He smiled at her his blue eyes staring intently in her doe eyes.

"I think we can."

* * *

><p>Damon was tossing and turning on and on in his bed. He couldn't remember when was the last time he could sleep in a comfy bed like this one, yet, sleep wouldn't come. All his thoughts were for the woman in the room next to his. Just saying her name in his mind made his body respond almost instantly. He wanted her. Badly. But he knew that would never happen. Her generosity was certainly not going to go that far. Who would want him, anyway? What could she possibly see in him? Nothing. He had nothing to offer to her. He <em>was<em> nothing.

He sighed and turn on his back. He closed his tired eyes and tried to control the images in his head. The image of her lips ghosting on his neck until it reach his lips. He could almost taste them if he concentrated enough.

His thoughts were disturbed by a noise in the other room. It sounded like a whimper or a sob. He listened carefully. He thouhgt he just had imagined it until the sounds came back louder this time. They were coming from Elena's room. Was she crying?

Curiosity won him over and he slowly got out of bed and walked into the bathroom he was sharing with her. Her door was ajar and he could hear the sound of her sobs more clearly. He opened her door a little more and peeked his head in her room.

"Elena?" he called in a whisper.

"Please, don't." she murmured.

For a second Damon thought she was talking to him and he was about to close the door and walk away but her pleading sounds made him change his mind.

"Please, stop." her voice begged. "Don't hurt me."

Damon entered her room. The lamp on her nightstand was still on and the soft light made her skin glow. He could see the tears on her cheeks. He watched her in her bed. She was curled in a ball and was clutching on her sheets. He could hear her cry and it broke his heart. He knew right away she was having a nightmare and he was pretty sure what it was about. He wanted to wake her up but he was afraid he would only scare her even more. His inner battle stopped when he saw her body starting to tense and her legs were kicking under the sheets. He couldn't leave her like this.

"Please." she cried louder.

Damon slowly walk to her bed and sat beside her shaking form. He gently put his hand on her shoulder.

"Elena, wake up." he gently shook her shoulder.

* * *

><p><em>It was dark and it was cold. Everything was so cold. The brick wall that her back was pressed on. The disgusting hands on her body. The breeze on her face while she was running. The ground where she was pushed down. Then there was the pain. Her head was hurting. The cold again, always the cold. The warmth of her tears on her cheeks.<em>

_"Please, don't."_

_She heard a soft whisper. It was a velvety voice. So soft she almost felt safe._

_"Elena?"_

_She couldn't see where the voice came from. More tears were falling from her eyes. She was pined to the ground. She tried to kick her legs. So cold, she was was so cold._

_"Please, stop." she begged. "Don't hurt me." _

_She could hear them laugh. The laughs were echoing in her head. God her head hurted._

_"Please!" she cried louder._

_Then she felt something warm on her shoulder. Something soft, something comforting. She heard the soft voice again._

_"Elena, wake up." the soft voice told her and she felt the warm touch of his hand again._

_It felt so good because it was cold, she was so cold. Wait? The voice tell her to wake up?_

_"Elena, please wake up!" the voice was begging._

_She opened her eyes to meet blue worried ones._

The first thing she saw was a pair of blue worried eyes staring at her. After a few seconds she realized where she was and jolted in her bed. She sat quickly still clutching on her sheets. She was shaking. She was wearing a black tank top with a pair of gray sweat pants. She was cold.

"Damon?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to scare you. I heard you from my room. I... wasn't sure if I had to wake you. But you seemed so scared and I-"

Before either one of them could comprehend was what happening, Elena threw herself at him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders holding him tight. She hid her face in the crook of his neck and burst into tears.

Damon let her cry on his shoulder not knowing what else he could do. He hated seing her like that. All he wanted was holding her back and sqeeze her in his arms and keep her there but he didn't know if he could.

"Damon..."

At this moment he decided he was going to do it. He slowly lifted his arms and put them around her. He softly began to run his hand on her back in a comforting manner.

"...Had a nig-th-mare..." she sobbed.

"Shh... It's okay..." he whispered. "You're safe now."

She pulled away from him and let go of his shoulders. She gaze into his eyes where she could see worries. Damon wiped her tears with his thumbs and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. His fingers, then, ghosted on her jaw line and down her neck. She kept staring at him and her lips parted slightly.

"Thank you, Damon. Again."

He gazed at her flawless face. There was a vague trace of a smile on her lips. Even like this, looking like a mess, she was the most beautiful thing he ever led his eyes on.

"You're welcome." Damon replied still sitting on her bed.

He waited a few more minutes, not talking, just staying there with her until he felt she was more relaxed. Damon didn't even realized he was holding her hand in his. He finally got up on his feet and she leant her body down on her mattress.

"Are you going to be okay?" his velvety voice asked.

"Yes." she said and closed her eyes.

Damon watched her quicly fall back asleep and then left her room. He returned in his, using the bathroom they were sharing and he laid himself on his bed. Sleep finaly took him over. He was safe too, for the first time. They both were.

* * *

><p>AN: Hello amazing readers and Delena lovers!

I hope you're all doing fine! I don't know for you but this hiatus is killing me! I need some Delena fix! But there's only one more week to go. We can do it, right?

I think the writers are messing with our faith recently especially with the last few episodes. But I won't lose mine. I think they're doing that on purpose so that when Delena really happen we'll all faint or die from an overdose of happiness! Haha...

Seriously now, I hope you liked this chapter. I know this story seem to be real slow but things are coming up. I swear! Don't forget that Stefan is a good friend of Elena, he might show up at her house someday...

Until, next chapter I wish you a great time and take care!

Eve xo

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	5. Who You Are

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 5~

~Who You Are~

Elena woke up after an agitated night. Her nightmare had felt so real she was still shaking. She rolled on her side and hugged her pillow. She was staring at her bathroom door and she was listening to the silence. She let her mind floating to Damon. She could still feel the warmth of his body on hers and the way he held her in his arms. His spicy masculine sent was intoxicating. Last night, she didn't want to let him go and it scared her. How could she possibly want a man after what happened to her that night? But he made her feel so safe... She never felt that safe with anyone, not even with her closest friends or even her past boyfriends. There was something between them. Something she couldn't explain.

She looked at her alarm clock on her nightstand; it was only six in the morning. Elena rolled on her back again and sighed. She stared at the ceiling for a while. It was definitely too early to be up, especially on a sunday morning. She tried so fall back asleep but when she looked at her clock again she knew it wouldn't happen. It was almost seven.

She walked slowly in the bathroom and stood in front the mirror above her sink. She brushed her hair with her fingers and put them in a high ponytail. She rubbed her hand on her tired face. She examined her reflection, turning and tilting her head to the left and to the right and sighed deeply. She turned the faucet and splashed some fresh water on her face. She wanted to take a shower but she didn't want to wake Damon up for no reason. She couldn't hear any sounds from his room and she presumed he was still sleeping.

She opened the door carefully not to make any sounds an peeked through the ajar door. She was surprised to see the room was empty and the bed was freshly made.

Elena felt a sudden wave of panic hitting her and she felt a small pang in her gut. He wouldn't leave like that, would he? Not without a goodbye... right? She rushed downstairs and when she didn't see him in her living room either, the feeling of panic grew even more.

That was when she heard noises coming from the kitchen. Her head snapped faster then an attaking cobra toward the sound. There he was, in her kitchen... Making breakfast? She walked to him. He was standing in front the stove and didn't seem to have heard her.

"Damon?" she asked feeling stupid because who else could be in her kitchen at this hour a sunday morning?

He turned around to greet her but his smile faded when he saw her. Damon mistook her worried face for something closer to anger. When he couldn't sleep anymore this morning, he decided to get up and cook her a breakfast to thank her for welcoming him in her home. By the look on her face he didn't know if his idea was still a good one.

"I... I couldn't sleep anymore so I was going to cook you a breakfast as a thank you treat for welcoming me into your home. I'm sorry... I should've ask first to use your kitchen."

"No, no... It's okay. It's just that I thought you left when I saw your room empty. You just surprised me."

Damon's tensed body relaxed and his face softened at her words. He couldn't stand the idea of making her angry.

"It smell good." she said. "What are you making?" she asked him.

"I just put the bread in the oven."

"Bread?" she frowned. "You made a bread?"

He nodded. "Onion and black olive fresh bread." he said.

Elena blinked a couple of times. Fresh bread? He made fresh bread with olives? For her?

"I hope it's okay?" he asked almost sheepishly.

"It's perfect, Damon. What else are you making? Can I help?" she asked. "I'm warning you, though. I'm horrible in a kitchen." she giggled.

Damon felt his body react immediately. How could a laugh have so much effect on him? It was just an innocent laugh! He had to turned his back to her. The last thing he wanted was for her to notice the bulge growing in his pants and for her to think he was a pervert. Who in hell would have a hard on for a giggle? Though with this woman, anything could be possible. She was still in her sweat pants and tank top. He could tell she wasn't wearing a bra and her messy ponytail was falling on her shoulders. She was the most beautiful woman he's ever laid his eyes on.

"It's fine. I've got this." he said.

"Are you sure? You don't have to do this, you know." she said.

Elena went to stand beside him and put her hand on his bicep. He pretented being busy with the ingredients on the counter but when she touched him he nearly exploded. He try to press his lower body on the counter to hide his 'problem' from her but this new friction didn't help at all.

"Yes, I do." he manage to replied. "I can't stay here and do absolutely nothing, Elena. Even if it's for a short period of time."

Elena bit her lip let go of his arm.

"I'll go take a shower, then."

His hand was now clutching on something but he had no idea what it was. He was fighting to keep his growl in his throat. He could feel his groin throbbing painfully. When she finally left the kitchen he exhaled the air he was keeping. He knew he couldn't stay that way so he made his way to the bathroom next to the kitchen.

He closed the door behind him and for a few seconds he paced in the little room. He couldn't believe he was going to act like some kind of horny teenager. He didn't had the right to do this while thinking of her in her own house. Could he look at her in the eyes afterward? Probably. He was a man after all and she would never know... The ache in his pant was too much too take anyway. He could try to do this thinking of some else, right? Damon knew it wouldn't work when he heard the shower running over his head. The image of her wet silky skin glistening under the water...

This was now a case of pure emergency. He was already close and he didn't even touched himself, yet. Damon quickly opened his pants and grasped on his thick shaft. He pumped himself on a quick pace because taking his time wasn't even an option. He pictured her kneeling in front of him, imagining what the warmth of her mouth would feel like and he came hard with a low growl. Damon cleaned himself and washed his hands. He walked back to the kitchen and finished cooking their breakfast.

* * *

><p>They were now sitting at the table eating the breakfast Damon cooked for them. The fresh bread was exquisite and the ham and cheese omelet was just perfect. Elena wondered why Damon ended up in the streets because he could definitely work in a restaurant if all his cooking was this good.<p>

"This is really good Damon! You're actually a good cook"

"Thanks." he said and paused. "My mother taught me a few things before she..." he didn't bother finishing his phrase.

"She seemed to be very nice."

Damon smiled and his eyes lit up a little.

"She was the most amazing woman. She was loving and caring. When I was young instead of playing with other kids I used to stay with her. She'd sit me on the counter and I could watch her all day. Sometimes she'd let me help. I think she's the only one that ever lo-" he stopped.

Elena gave him a comforting smile. She understood how hard it must have been for him.

"I miss mine too." she said her voice low. " I mean... She still here... But she might never wake up. Even if she does..."

For a moment they only stare in each other eyes. No words were needed. They just connected silently. She was the first to turn away.

"Have you... Is your father-"

"I never got along with him and I never will." he cut her harshly.

Elena eyes widened.

"I'm sorry, Damon. I didn't mean to pry."

"It's okay. You have the right to know who's in your house, Elena. I just don't like to talk about myself."

"Still, I was just been nosey. It's an old habit I have. It became worst with my job." she tried to explained with a smile.

"Your job?" he frowned.

She nodded. "You obviously notice I'm not homeless..." she began.

Damon nodded back and waited for her to continue.

"I always loved writing and reading. I'm very curious and nosey by nature. I always were." she smiled. "My mother pushed me into writing because she thought I was good. My father didn't mind as long as I was happy I could always do what I wanted to do..." she paused a few second, her eyes were getting teary and she took a deep breath. "My dream was to be a writer... but when the accident happened... I needed a more stable job so I went for journalism. It's not the same thing but I still love it."

"You're a journalist?"

"Yes. I work for the Mystic Gazette." she said on a sad tone.

"You said you love it but it doens't look like it." he said slowly knowing it wasn't his business.

"I do. I love writing." she said playing with her food in her plate. "Let's just say that I'm not very welcome by everyone there."

Damon frowned. How could anyone not love her? Were they stupid? Elena looked at him and smiled when she saw his face.

"My mother's a journalist too. She used to work there. They never said it straight to my face but it's obvious they think it's the only reason I'm there. That, and Elijah too."

Elijah? Who was that Elijah? A parent? A friend? A lover ? Damon felt a sudden pang in his heart at his last thought. He knew he didn't have any right too feel that way but the feeling was stronger than him. It was obvious she must have someone in her life. She was just so beautiful... body and soul. She was perfect.

"Elijah and my mother are best friend since forever." she continued and Damon felt an instant relief at the news. He wasn't a lover.

"He's like a second father too me... In fact he's my Godfather."

Even better, he thought. A father figure.

"And he's also my boss. My colleagues know about my story. I'm Elena Gilbert. I'm Miranda's daughter and the boss Goddaughter... It doesn't matter to them if I'm talented or not. I was hired because I'm a Gilbert. No one takes me seriously. I always have to work harder to prove myself."

Damon wanted to go there and kick some of her so called colleagues where the sun doesn't shine. He wanted to punch some faces. Who in hell could be stupid enough to hate on her like that. And suddenly he understood. He was sure to know the reason why she was in the streets. She wanted to prove them she was a good journalist. She risked her life just to write an article on the homeless.

"Is this why you... why you were outside the other night?" he asked already knowing the answer.

Elena nodded. " I wanted my next article to be different, to be more personal... to mean something. I don't know... It's going to be Christmas soon and I thought it could be interesting... I mean, people claimed to be generous at this time of year. They claimed to be concerned about what's around them. " she shook her head and scoffed. "Now I'm not so sure it's true. "

Damon remained silent. He knew how people could react to you when you lived in the streets. He was experiencing it for a while now. Most of them were ignoring you totally while the ones that dare to look in your direction were doing it with indifference or disgust. A very few of them were actually honestly compassionnate about men like him. Only one person out of one thousand would do what _she_ had done and he was standing in her kitchen.

"So you risked your life for an article? Elena it's dangerous for a woman like you in the streets."

Elena scoffed. "You sound just like Elijah... He said pretty much the same thing to me."

"That Elijah seems to be a clever and wise man." Damon said.

"He is actually." she began. "I almost laughed in his face when he mention that it could be dangerous... I grew up here. The thought something could happen to me never crossed my mind. It's such a quiet town..." she said looking away.

Damon took her hand in his and squeezed it lightly. He waited for her to look at him.

"Nothing that happened that night was your fault, Elena."

"But if I wasn't there they couldn't have hurt me and you wouldn't-"

Damon squeezed her hand harder. She was unbelievable. How could she blame herself for what happened to him? Those bastards were the only one to blame and he didn't care what they did to him. He could still see them touching her, hurting her and it made his skin crawl.

"Nothing that happened that night was your fault." he repeated insisting on every words.

* * *

><p>Elena was sitting at a table with Caroline at The Grill. The air outside was chilly and they were both wrapping their fingers around the a mug of hot coffee. Christmas songs were playing from the jukebox and people seemed chirpier than usual.<p>

"I'm telling you, Elena. He hates me." Caroline complained.

"No he doens't. I'm sure you're wrong." Elena said and sipped on her coffee.

Caroline huffed and rolled her blue eyes.

"Please! If Stefan dumped me for running back to you, he would be happy dancing!"

Elena couldn't keep her laughter for herself.

"I don't see what's so funny about this." her friend almost hissed.

"Oh Care!" she laughed more. "I was just picturing Giuseppe dancing..."

Caroline tried to remain offended but at the image of Giuseppe dancing and rolling his arms around she burst out of laughter with her friends. They were both giggling so hard, people was starting to look at them.

"Seriously," Caroline finally said. "I'm scared."

"Why?" Elena asked.

Caroline took a sip of coffee and sighed deeply.

"My father's coming and wants to meet him..."

"Oh..."

"Yeah..."

Elena understood right away what her friend meant. Giuseppe was a very strict man. He didn't understand 'difference' and he could be very judmental. When Giuseppe had learnt about Caroline's father was gay he wasn't pleased at all.

"I'm sure it'll go well. Stefan loves you. Focus on that. It's all that matters." Elena tried to put a smile on her best friend's face.

"You're right!" she said. "Now, enough about me. Where were you these past days?" she asked cocking an eyebrow.

Elena wriggled a little on her chair and took a long sip of her coffee.

"I was busy..."

Caroline's face lit up immediately.

"Really? Was it a hanky-panky-busy kind of way?" she asked waggling her eyesbrows.

Elena face turned four shades of red.

"No!" she said looking away.

Caroline squealed and clapped her hands making the whole Grill's clients looking they're way again.

"Yes it was! Oh my God! Tell. Me. Everything! What's his name?"

"Caroline..."

"Do I know him? Is he hot? Oh I'm sure he is!"

"Caroline..." she tried again.

"Was he good?" She asked smirking. "I need to meet him! We could double date!" Caroline squealed again.

"Care!" she shouted louder than she intended. "It was nothing like that. I was working."

Caroline's face fell in a pout.

"But you were working with someone, right?" she asked.

"Kind of..." Elena said.

Caroline's face lit up again.

"Were you working with that hot colleague of yours? What's is name again? Kol?"

"Eww, Care! No!"

"What! He's cute." Caroline said."

"He's a jerk."

"Okay, okay. Not him, but I think it's time for you to date again."

"I'm fine by myself, Care. Don't worry for me."

Elena took the last sip of coffee in her mug and quickly got on her feet.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going? Don't run away you coward!"

"I'm not running away." she rolled her eyes. "I'm going to visit my mom at the center. I haven't in a few days."

"Oh God I'm sorry. How is she? Is there any changes?"

Elena shook her head and buttoned her coat. She wrapped a scarf around her neck.

"I don't think there ever will be."

Caroline hugged her friend tightly.

"Don't lose hope, Elena. You don't know that."

Elena hugged her back. She grabbed her purse and turned to leave.

"We're not finished with our dating convo by the way!" she heard her friend shouting.

Elena smiled and left The Grill.

* * *

><p>When Elena walked in her kitchen the first thing she saw was half of his body lying on the floor. She almost dropped all of her things and rushed to him. She found him lying on his back with his upper body under her kitchen sink.<p>

"Damon?"

He haven't hear her coming. When she called his name it made him jump and he hit his head on the top of the counter. He let out a growl of pain and he brought his hand on his head.

"Oh my God, Damon. I'm sorry! Are you alright?" she asked kneeling beside him.

He was sitting on the floor with her by his side. She put her hand over his. She was looking at him with concern.

"I think I'm bad luck for you, Damon. You always end up hurting because of me." she smiled.

Damon smiled back at her and for a moment they stared at each other. Her hand was burning his, sending jolts of electricity in his body. He couldn't remember when was the time he felt that way. Maybe it was because he haven't been with someone in a long time.

"I think I'll be okay." he tried to laugh.

She helped him get up on his feet and eyed her sink with a frown.

"When I walked in your kitchen I saw water on the floor." he explained.

"Not again..." she whined. "I really have to call a plumber I guess."

"It's okay. I fixed it."

"You did?" she asked.

"Yeah... just some loose pieces. I found the tools in the garage. Your pipes are getting rusty though. You may have to change them."

They got up on their feet and Damon closed the cupboard under her sink. They sat at the table and Damon felt the questions in her eyes.

"Damon... Can I ask you a question?"

"I think you just did." he said playfully.

In fact he was trying to hide the fact he was feeling uneasy. He knew at some point he would have to answer her questions but he wasn't sure if he could tell her the whole truth. It's not that it was that bad... just that he was really secretive about his life. He could tell her a little about his life without giving too much...

She giggled a little and bit on her lip. His eyes were glued to the movement.

"I just don't understand... I know it's none of my business, Damon but... You can cook, you seem to be good with tools... I mean... I was wondering..."

"Why I don't have a job?" he finished for her.

She bit her lip again and a light shade of red colored her cheeks. God she was just so beautiful he had to look away.

"I'm sorry." she said quickly. "Forget I asked. You don't have to tell me anything."

Damon took a deep breath. What could he say?

"When I was younger,"he began. "I wanted to become a plumber or an electrician, build things out of wood or anything. I just loved working with my hands, building things." he shook his head. "My father didn't agree to that. He wanted me to follow his steps. It wasn't prestigious enough for him. The only work I could do with my hands was if I became a surgeon. I never was good enough for him. We never got along and it became worst after my mother died."

His hands closed into fists on the table. Elena only look at him sympathetically, letting him decided if he wanted to continue or not.

"I was seventeen when we had this huge fight. He's an extremely stubborn man but so was I. I made it very clear I would never be a doctor like him. He threw me out of the house and told me to come back only when my senses would." he ran his hand in his raven hair. "I never did. I didn't care because when I was going to turn eighteen I was suppose to inherit from my mother. I would have money." he stopped to take another deep breath.

"Damon, you don't have to explain all of this to me if you don't want to." she said but he cut her off.

"I started getting in trouble just to piss him off. He was so afraid to lose his perfect reputation... I did anything I could to annoy the crap out of him. I stopped going to school... My life was just a big party..." he scoffed. "When I turned eighteen I went to the bank for my money. My father had good attorney friends... He took all my mother's money from me... I had nothing... No money, no diploma, no job... I knew he tried to make me crawl back to him. He thought I would come home and obey him like a nice puppy. But I never did. If he was stubborn I was even more. Then many other things happened and... Here I am."

Elena looked at him. It was obvious to her that wasn't the whole story but she let it go. Whatever happened in his past, she was sure of it, was in his past. She just felt something wasn't right about his story. Not that he was lying, just that he let a few things aside.

* * *

><p>Damon got out the shower and wrapped the fluffy towel around his waist. He walked to the sink and wipped the steam of the mirror. He look closely at his reflection. The bruises were disappearing fast enough and would probably completely vanish in a couple of days. He brushed his teeth and before going in 'his' room he unlocked her door so she could use the bathroom. He pressed his ear on the door and could hear a very light snore. His lips curled into a smile but fell almost immediately. All he wanted to do was to open that door, walk in there, lay beside this gorgeous angel, take her in his arms and...<p>

Damon scoffed at himself. He didn't know how he manage to survive so long without sex. It's been too long since the last time... and his angel was just so... He decided to go sleep it off before he would need a cold shower again.

As he lay on his back Damon let his mind work to Elena again.

"I wonder if she bought all the crap you told her?" he asked himself aloud.

* * *

><p>AN: Hello everyone!

Oh my God! Finally! This chapter is over. I struggled for a long time with it because, to be honest, it wasn't the most interesting one. I hated writing it and I still do. A lot of blah blah more boring blah in it and yet, there will be more explanation to do later. BUT, in the next chapters, they will definitely grow closer as Christmas approach.

Elena will start working again and even Damon might get a job! And yes, Damon is hidding something else but it won't be explain right away. Later, I promise.

I hope you liked it. Please leave a review, I love to read your opinion on this.

Take care,

Eve xo

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	6. A New Life

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 6~

~A New Life~

When Elena woke up the next morning, she got out of her bed and went to her bathroom. She locked Damon's door and took a quick shower. She dried her hair with a towel, not bothering using her hair dryer. She put an old pair of jeans and a long sleeve blue sweater. She was supposed to take the week off anyway. That's when she realised she should have called Elijah. It was still early but she knew he would be up. Elijah was one of those morning people.

She unlocked Damon's door before heading out her room. She went downstairs in the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. It was all about the coffee in the morning. That was vital. No day could go well without starting it with her coffee.

As she watched the dark warm liquid fill the pot, she grabbed the phone on the counter and dial her boss number.

"Elena?" the british voice answered. "Is everything okay?"

"Hello, Elijah. Yes I'm fine. I was calling you for a favor." she said slowly.

She opened the cupboard and picked a mug for herself.

"Sure. What is it?"

Elena took a deep breath.

"I was wondering if I could work from home this week? Or at least a couple of days?"

She picked a second mug for Damon in case he would want one later and left it on the counter. She closed the cupboard.

"How come? Are you sick?" he sounded worried. "Did something happen with Miranda?"

"No no. There's no change with mom. I'm not sick either. I just had a tiny accident..." she began knowing he would probably freak out.

"An accident, you say? Are you alright? Do you need anything?"

Elena filled her mug with hot coffee and walked to the frige to grab some milk with her phone stuck between her ear and shoulder. She poured milk in her mug and put it back down the fridge.

"I'm fine, really." she tried to be reassuring. "I slipped and hit my head hard. I went to the hospital went I felt dizzy and nauseous." she continued.

She gave him the same excuse she gave Guiseppe. She thought it would be safer to use the same lie for everybody.

"The hospital?" he cut her worried.

"Just a precaution. No concussion. Nothing. But they told me to rest and take the week off. I can get a paper from the doctor if you want."

"That won't be necessary, Elena. I believe you." he said then paused. " Are you sure you're alright? How was your night outside?" he asked carefully.

This was a subject she wanted to avoid. If he knew, Elijah would panic. He would be ranting her for hours about how he told her not to do it. About how it was dangerous. About what she did was incredibly stupid. That she risked her life for no reason. That she should go to sheriff Forbes...

"It went well." she lied. "It was cold, though." she added with a fake chuckle.

"I bet it was." he laughed. " You always hated cold temperature."

"That I do." she giggled for real this time.

"Do you need anything? Are you sure you should be alone?"

Elena cleared her throat. "Actually, I'm not alone. An old friend is staying over for a while."

"Oh? Someone I know?"

"I don't think so." she answered quickly. "He's not from Mystic Falls."

"He's an he..."

Elena rolled her eyes and smiled. She could hear the protective father figure in his voice.

"What's his name?"

"His name's Damon..."

"Damon?"

"Yes. Why?" she frowned.

"Nothing, darling. Just... that name sounds familiar. That's all."

* * *

><p>Elena entered The Grill and went straight to the bar. She could see Matt almost running from table to table. He went to the kitchen with his orders and came back to the bar. She chuckled when he catched his breath.<p>

"Are you okay?" she asked "You seem to be really busy."

The Grill was in fact full. It was rare for a monday morning. Matt sighed loudly.

"I was suppose to only work in the kitchen today but both of our waitresses took the day off. So I have to be everywhere at the same time."

"It's one of these days, huh?"

"Tell me about it." he sighed. "I don't even want to think about lunch time when I'll have to tend the bar too." he whined but smiled afterward. "To top it off, the plumbing is leaking in the kitchen and I have to mop the floor every five minutes! And of course the only plumber in town is on vacation for a week..."

Elena giggled. "My poor Matty." she shook her head.

"Excuse me for a sec." he told her when two breakfast were ready to be served.

She watched him rush in the kitchen and then almost run to the table. She suddenly had an illumination. Maybe Damon could check it? He repaired hers after all. It was nine now. He should be up...

Matt came back and exchanged a quick smile with Elena before he grabbed the pot of coffee and walked table to table to refill the clients. Matt came back again just in time to pick three more plates for another table. When he came back he exhaled deeply.

"Thank God the cook is here or I would pass out!" he said and she smiled again.

"You know... I might know someone who could check the plumbing." she began. "He's not a professional plumber but he fixed my kitchen sink. I can call him and see if he can come..."

"That'd be great!" he said with relief.

She bit her lips. "I'll call him, then."

* * *

><p>Damon stirred in his bed and opened his eyes. He was lying on his back he ran his hands in his hair and then on his face to finally drop them on the mattress. What was he doing? What was he thinking? Damon knew he could't keep up like that. He should just leave. Just forget about her... Yeah, right. Because that will be an easy to do, he thought with sarcasm.<p>

Elena wasn't the kind of woman you forget just like that. She was so beautiful... and not just physically but on every level a person could be. How many people would do what she's done for him, a complete stranger. Yeah, yeah, yeah... he saved her life but still, not everyone are that thankful. No one was ever that nice to him even before... What was it about her?

It didn't help that he dreamed of her again. In his dreams, she always dress in whites like the angel that she is. _His_ angel... But she never kept her clothes for long in his dreams. _His_. Like she could be his for real. His dreams were so vivid it's almost painful. God he felt guilty. Why was he feeling guilty? He shouldn't have to feel this. His dreams were only his, right? No harm done, right?

Speaking of guilt. It was following him around. He felt bad about not being completely honest with her. He felt like he was abusing of her kindness and innocence. The thought disgusted him but he couldn't tell her. That would mess everything he had planned to do.

He took a quick shower enjoying the warm water on his body. God he had missed to take showers every day. He dressed with a dark blue jeans and a black shirt that belonged to her brother and got out of his room. The house was silent while he went downstairs. He walked in the kitchen and saw a mug beside the pot of hot coffee. There was a folded paper on the counter; it had his name on it. He picked it up and opened it.

_Good morning, Damon,_

_I had to leave again but I'll be back soon. Coffee's ready and there's food in the fridge. Just help yourself. I'll see you later._

_Elena_

Damon sighed. She was so nice. Why was she so n- His thoughts were disturbed by the phone ringing. He decided to ignore it. It's not like it was his house anyway. He poured himself coffee while the phone kept ringing. He choked on his coffee when he heard her calling his name. It took him a moment to realise it came from the answering machine.

"Damon? Are you there?" he heard her and she seemed... worried?

"Damon if you're there can you pick up the phone? It's Elena."

He couldn't help the smile on his face. Like she needed to mention it was her. He would recognize her anytime.

"Damon?" she asked again.

Just answer you moron! He chided himself. He picked the first phone in sight.

"Hello?" he said almost shyly.

"Damon!"

She sounded relief, happy to hear him. His heart started racing. She was happy to hear _him._ Get a grip, now, he chided again.

"Elena, what's wrong?"

"I... Do you know where The Grill is?"

He frowned. "Yes, I know. Why?"

"My friend works there and the plumbing is leaking and the plumber is on vacation and-"

"You want me to check it out?" he asked surprised.

"If you want to." she said slowly.

" Elena... I'm not a professional... I don't know if I can."

"It's okay if you can't Damon. Just check it out." she said. "Please." she added.

He smiled again. "Okay, I'll check it out. But I can't leave without locking the door. Will you be here soon?"

"Oh the house!" she said. "I haven't thought of that. Hmm... Okay, just look in the cookie jar on the counter in the kitchen. It has the shape of a mouse. There's a spare key in it. Just take it!" she offered.

"You want me to use your spare key?" he was dumbfounded.

Was she crazy? You don't let a stranger use your key! On the other hand you don't bring strangers home and leave them alone in your house either like they live there. They could be thieves, rapists or murderers or God knows what!

"Yes. Just take it and come to The Grill. Please" her sweet voice said.

"Ok... I think I can be there in about fifteen minutes."

* * *

><p>When Damon entered The Grill he spotted her right away at the bar. She was talking with a blond guy with a blue tight shirt with <em>The Grill<em> written in red on his back. He said something that made Elena laugh. Damon fell something break inside him and tried to ignore it.

When she turned toward him and saw him her smile widened and she waved at him. He waved back unsure what to do and walked toward her.

"Damon! I'm glad you're here." she said sliding off her stool. "This is my friend Matt." she pointed toward the blond guy.

"Hi, Damon. It's nice to meet you." they shook hands.

"Hi, Matt."

"Elena told me you might be able to fix the plumbing in the kitchen."

"I'm not a professional, though. But I think I can check..."

"That'd be great." Matt said sincerly. "I'll show you where it is."

Damon nodded and then turned to a smiling Elena.

"I should give this back to you." he lifted the key to her face.

"Oh, no. Keep it." she said.

Damon frowned.

"I'm going to visit my mother at the institute and if you finish here before I'm home you'll be able to get in."

This time he looked totally speechless and Matt observed them quizzicaly but didn't said a word.

"You give me the key?" it was almost a whisper.

"Well, yeah." she shrugged. "Why are you surprised. I told you you could stay..."

"Thank you." he said awe-struck.

"Okay then. I have to go. Bye you two."

"Hey! Say hello to your mom for me." Matt said.

"Sure! Bye now." and she waved at both of them

"Bye..." Damon waved back still startled.

"The kitchen is this way." Matt cut Damon from his state of shock.

"Hum, sure." and he followed Matt in the kitchen.

* * *

><p>Elena walked into her mother's room with daisies in her hand. It was her mother favorite flowers. Every week her father used to buy flowers for her mother. The house always had had flowers in it. That was before the accident... But Elena decided to honor her parents by keeping her father's romantic tradition and she brought flowers for her mother every week.<p>

Elena took the old flowers in the vase beside her mother's bed and put the fresh ones in it. She gently brushed her fingers in Miranda dark brown hair and she leaned down to place a soft kiss on her mother's cheek.

"Hey, mom." she sat on the bed next to her mother. "Matt says hi too." she smiled lightly. "Sorry, I didn't come to see you this weekend." she looked at her sleeping form. "I was... busy." she said her voice low.

"I'm writing a very special article. It's about the homeless... You know, because it's Christmas soon." she sighed. "I hope it'll be good."

She kept staring at the unresponding woman next to her.

"I miss you... The house is empty without you and dad. Jeremy is still in school." she took her mother's hand and squeezed it lightly.

"I met someone." she said quietly. "I think you'd like him..."

* * *

><p>Damon got out the kitchen while Matt was wiping the counter bar. The first rush of the day was finally over and Matt had time to take a break.<p>

"So?" Matt asked hopeful.

"I fixed it temporarily." Damon said. "But I'm afraid the real leak is in the plumbing in the wall..."

"Argh." Matt sighed. "I'll call the big boss today to let him know." he raked his hand in his blond hair. "It's okay for now, though?"

"Yeah but a real plumber should check it really soon."

"Thanks man." Matt said sincerly. "So... You and Lena, huh? How come I never heard of you before?"

"Humm... We met-"

A loud noise followed by a painful scream coming from the kitchen cut him off. Matt ran into the kitchen and Damon followed him. Charlie, the cook, was holding a bloody hand with his other one.

"Arghhh!" the man growled. "My finger! I cut my finger." the man choked.

"Fuck!" Matt rush to him. "We have to go to the hospital." he said quickly. "I'll drive you."

Matt looked panicked and his eyes stopped on Damon.

"I know you already help me." Matt said so fast Damon could barely understand what he was saying. "But can you stay here until I come back... The rush is over now. You'll just have to serve some coffee." he said had fast as he could.

"Hmm, sure..."

"I'll come back as soon as I can. Probably within thirty minutes." he rushed again.

Charlie kept growling in pain still holding his hand while Matt managed to put a jacket on his shoulder and walked them out.

"Thanks!" he shouted through the back door.

Damon stood alone in the kitchen and looked around him. There was a lot of blood on the island and on the floor. He saw some wiping cloths near the sink and poured water on it. This place needed a big cleaning.

* * *

><p>When Elena came back home, the house was empty. It was already an hour ago that Damon was at The Grill so she hoped everything was fine for him. A sudden wave of panic hit her. What if he just left? No. He wouldn't leave without a goodbye. She refused to believe it. She couldn't tell why she cared so much about Damon. There was something mysterious around him. Something she needed to know.<p>

She went to the room that she used as an office and sat in front of her computer. She needed to work on that article for the Mystic Gazette. She stared at her blank screen. Waiting for inspiration that didn't seem to want to make an appearance. She tapped her fingers on the table. Over and over again. Soon, her right foot joined the tempo. Her page was still blank.

She sighed deeply. What could she write about? She was suppose to spend the whole weekend outside. She spent only five hours in which she recieved five dollars, a condom and chips in her face. Oh! Yes! The very nice old lady that gave her a sandwich and a coffee... She smiled remembering the nice lady. Her smile fell quickly at another memory. Could she write about that? Could she describe her agression? She didn't want to... but surely it was a part of reality for all the homeless women out there. Maybe some of them had to prostitute them self for a bit of money... The thought made her shiver. Then, there was Damon... Her savior... Could she write about him? Maybe without mentioning his name. But how to mention him without mentioning her agression? She kept staring at her empty screen, the little black line flashing and waiting... like her.

She closed her computer with a frustated sigh. She wouldn't be able to write at the moment.

* * *

><p>Matt came back at The Grill and found the place full again. His first reaction was to panic but he quickly notice every clients were served and enjoying their breakfast. He saw Damon walking out the kitchen with two plates in one hand and grabbing a pot of coffee in the other.<p>

"Oh my God, man." Matt said when Damon came back near the kitchen. "Did you serve all those people by yourself?" he looked impress.

"Humm... Yeah..." he shrugged like it was no big deal. "I didn't had the time to wash any dishes, though. I'm sorry..."

"Please!" Matt scoffed. "You just saved my butt and my job, here. I couldn't care less about the dishes."

Damon shrugged again. He wasn't used to be thanked for anything. "It was nothing... Just some breakfast..."

"Just some breakfast!" Matt shook his head but then stopped straight. "Hey, man. Do you work somewhere?"

"Not for the moment... No."

"Listen. I hate to have to ask but with Charlie gone for a while we need a cook for the morning shift... and with what I just saw..."

"You're offering me a job?" he asked surprised. What was it with the people of this town?

"It would only be temporary but, yeah, if you could work here on mornings you would save my life."

"I guess I can try..." he said slowly.

"Man, that's great! Can you start tomorrow?

* * *

><p>Damon was standing on Elena's porch wondering if he should knock or just enter. He could hear Christmas music inside. After a few more seconds he decided to go in.<p>

"It's me, Damon." he called hesitantly.

"In the living room!" she shouted.

Damon removed his shoes and went to the living room. She was standing on a small stepladder in front of a huge Christmas tree. The two cats were playing with the ornements on the floor running from a side of the room to the other.

"Hey!" she grinned. "Matt called! I heard it went well!"

"Yeah. Hmm. I think I have a job..."

"I know he told me!" her grin widened. "Damon, I'm so happy for you!"

"I just hope I don't screw this up. I haven't work in a while..."

"I'm sure you'll do well, Damon. Matt was really impressed by you and I know you can cook good breakfast." she blushed.

They stared at each other. She was about to say something else when her cats started to fight for the same ornement and hit her stepladder. She lost her balance and her eyes widened in horror. Damon rushed for her and catched her before she fell but he stumbled on the lights and they both fell on the floor. She was hovering above him. They were nose to nose. Both their lips were parted.

"You have something..." he whispered.

His hand reach for her hair and slowly he removed a tiny ornement that was stucked in her hair.

"Fake mistletoe..." he mumbled.

"Mistletoe" she mumbled back.

And their lips were like a magnet as they reach for each other. They brushed against each other tentatively slow at first. The kiss became more urgent when he grabbed her waist and sit up with her straddling him. He didn't even mind the pain in his hip, forgetting completely about it. All he could think about was the fact that he was kissing an angel and she was kissing him back.

Elena broke the kiss and got quickly on her feet. Her hands covering her flushed cheeks.

"Damon... I'm sorry... I can't..."

She climbed the stairs two by two leaving Damon sitting on the floor of the living room.

* * *

><p>AN: I feel terrible! I've been so busy with everything that I let you down and kept you waiting for an update. I'M SORRY! Please forgive me?

The next chapter shouldn't take to long. It going to be called Dream a little dream of me. It's going to be shorter but will be a little treat from me with fluffly stuff.

I hope you still like this story.

Tell me what you think.

Eve xo

* * *

><p>Twitter: titeve79<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm onlyborrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	7. Dream A Little Dream Of Me

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 7~

~Dream A Little Dream Of Me~

* * *

><p>Damon looked at the time on the clock on the nightstand next to his bed. His eyes fixed on the two annoying dots flashing, teasing him. It was like they were mocking him. <em>You're not going to sleep. You're not going to sleep.<em> _You're not going to sleep._ Damon wanted to punch the damn thing but he looked up the ceiling instead and let out a sigh of frustration. He wasn't going to sleep.

He closed his eyes and let his mind go back to earlier this evening. The moment her soft lips had touched his he was lost. He hadn't kissed anyone in a long time. The kiss had been slow at first. Her soft lips barely brushing on his. But then, the kiss had heated up a little and became more urgent. He remembered grabbing her small waist and sitting up. He remembered her hand in his hair and the other on his shoulder. He remembered her sexy ass grinding on his thighs. He remembered having to control himself and not just take her on the floor like a caveman. And then he remembered her running away.

Damon turned again in his bed. Of course she ran away. Why in hell would she want him? He tossed and turned and looked at the mocking clock. _ You're not going to sleep. You're not going to sleep. _ He grabbed a pillow and pressed it against his face to cover his frustrated growl.

* * *

><p>Elena was lying on her bed her ankles crossed. One hand was on her belly and the other one was resting on her pillow beside her head. She twirled a lock of hair with her index. Her eyes were wide open and glued to her ceiling. She couldn't tell if she even blinked once in the past five minutes. All she had in mind was Damon. Damon with his warm and soft but demanding lips. Damon with his hands on her waist. Damon and his beautiful raven hair. Damon and his gorgeous bluest of eyes. Damon, Damon, Damon... She bit her lower lip and finally closed her eyes.<p>

Elena rolled on her side with both her hands fisted on her pillow. She couldn't stop thinking about him since he came into her life. He was different from the men she had known in the past. Not that there was many of them, but he was definitely different. He made her feel safe. Even though he had nothing he made her feel like a queen. Just the way he was looking at her made her shivered.

She sighed deeply and flushed at the memory of their kiss. Why did she left again? Her cheeks flushed some more at the thought of what could have happened if she wouldn't have ran away. Would they have spent the night together? Would she have slept with him? Her heart raced at the idea. She let her imagination float to him again and she tried to picture them together.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Elena?" she muttered in a whisper.

* * *

><p><em>Damon opened his eyes with the urge of drinking orange juice. Why did he want orange juice at- He looked at the clock- At two forty-three in the morning? He rolled himself on his side and sat on the edge of the bed. He rubbed his hand on the nape of his neck before running it in his tousled hair. Damon stood up and scratched his chin where he could feel the stubbles under his fingers.<em>

_He walked out of the room as silently as he could. He didn't want to wake her up. He closed the door quietly and made his way down the stairs. The two cats were peacefully sleeping under the Christmas tree and it made him smile. _

_He kept walking until he reached the dark kitchen. He opened the fridge and grabbed the bottle of orange juice. Trying to remember where the glasses were, Damon opened a first cupboard but only saw plates and bowls. He opened the next one and finally took a glass from it. He poured some in it and put back the bottle in the fridge._

_When Damon turned around he almost dropped his glass. Elena was standing right in front of him. She was standing really close to him. She was wearing white short shorts with a white tank top. Always in white, he thought for himself. Her long hair was up in a high ponytail. He could smell her shampoo from where he was._

_She smiled lightly at him and tilted her head on the side. Her eyes sparkled with something close to amusement and something else he couldn't define when she looked at him up and down... slowly. Was she checking him out? He looked down at himself and his eyes widened in horror. Fuck! He was only wearing his boxers!_

"_You can't sleep either?" her soft voice asked._

"_I was thirsty..."_

_She smiled again and Damon felt like a complete idiot standing there with his orange juice in his fucking boxers. What a way to make a fool of yourself, man. Could this be more embarrassing?_

"_Well, I was hungry." she chuckled and opened the freezer._

_She picked an ice cream tub and two spoons in a drawer._

"_Do you want ice cream, Damon?" she asked her voice low. "With me." she added and she brushed the tip of the spoons on her lower lip._

_She walked away and went to sit at the table. Damon followed her step and sat next to her. He watched her open the lid of the ice cream tub and he sipped on his cold orange juice. Maybe that would cool him down... Or not, he thought when he watched her lick her finger._

_Their eyes met and she gave him her little smile again. He nervously picked his glass and took another gulp. He was just grateful he hadn't choked on it and that the table could hide the bulge in his boxers that made him uncomfortable. _

_She handed him a spoon and placed the ice cream between them. She scooped a bit of the chocolate dessert and brought the spoon to her mouth. With her doe brown eyes still glued to his blue orbs, she let the spoon slowly sliding out of her pressed lips._

_Damon took a sharp intake of breath. What was going on here? What was she doing? Trying to kill him? He took some of the ice cream too and put the spoon in his mouth trying to concentrate on something else than his throbbing erection now very present. He was glad she wasn't talking because he wasn't sure if he could even articulate simple words in this instant. _

_They kept eating in silence for a while. She brought the spoon to her mouth and a drop of ice cream fell on her chin and melt away to her collarbone. She picked it up with her index and sucked the ice cream from her finger. Damon's eyes darkened and before he could even think or stop himself, he dropped his own spoon and grabbed her wrist._

_Elena widened her eyes when he pulled her on his laps and before she could say anything, Damon wrapped his hand behind her neck and pulled her head down until their lips collided. She immediately responded to his kiss. She ran one of her hand in his hair while the other grasped his bicep. She shifted on his laps and felt his rock hard bulge under her. _

_Damon ran his hand on her thigh up and down and groaned in her mouth. Their tongues were dancing a slow but passionate sensual dance and they could taste the chocolate from one another. Elena moaned when his hand slid under her tank top and stroked the skin of her back. She soon found herself with her hands on his bare chest enjoying his muscular body._

_Damon got up so fast with her in his arms that the chair he was sitting on fell on the floor with a loud thud. She wrapped her arms around his shoulder and he sat her on the table. He placed himself between her thighs and ran his hands on them. They were still kissing hungrily and he snaked an arm around the small of her back pulling her closer to him._

_Elena arched her back and placed her hands on the table when Damon nuzzled her neck. Their lips collided again but he broke the kiss leaving them both panting and wanting for more. Using his finger, Damon scooped some ice cream and slowly rubbed his finger on Elena's lips. Her tongue followed his finger and she licked her lips before engulfing his finger in her mouth._

_She sucked softly on his finger never keeping her eyes from his. Her hand ran up and down his naked chest while his free hand glided to her stomach. Slowly he found a way in her short shorts and his finger found the most intimate part of her body. When she moaned, he pulled his finger out of her mouth and scooped more ice cream. Once again he spread the cool delicious product on her lips and she happily licked them along with his finger._

_She started to suck harder on his index and Damon growled. He slid a finger inside her feeling her warmth and wetness and he growled louder when he felt her small hand stroking him through his boxers. Her hand tugged on his waistband and he left wet kisses on her neck and shoulder while she was still sucking hard on his finger. Her hand found its way in his boxers and..._

... And he woke up. His widened eyes fixed the ceiling. He was panting and trying to concentrate. What the fuck was that? He glanced at the clock; it was almost six am. Now he needed to get up soon if he didn't want to be late for work. Work! Damn it! He inwardly yelled at himself.

He sat quickly in his bed and stiffened a growl reminding him of his painful hard on. Fuck! He would need the bathroom... again.

* * *

><p><em>Most of the lights were finally installed in the tree. She would be able to start putting the ornaments in it. She gleefully watched her cats fighting over one in particular. She just loved this time of year. Even after the accident that killed her father and left her mother in a deep coma, she always loved it.<em>

_Still perch on her stepladder she turned around and saw him. Her gorgeous new housemate and her savior. She grinned at him. She couldn't tell why but she was just happy to see him._

"_You're just in time, Damon." she told him. "Want to help?"_

_He shrugged and made a step forward. "Sure." he smiled. _

_He made another step forward as the cats ran over the stepladder and hit it. It all happened before she could even register what was happening. Her eyes widened in horror when she lost her balance and the last thing she knew was that she was hovering over a gorgeous man who was mumbling about mistletoes._

_Mistletoes... I love mistletoes, she thought while her lips dropped onto his. His lips were soft and solid all at once; they were perfect. She bit on his lower lip and tugged on it and he let out a tiny growl making her smile._

_When he grabbed her waist and sat up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. His hands quickly wandered on her sides up and down enjoying her soft small body. Damon's lips were now nibbling her ear lobe and she moaned his names._

"_Damon..." she breathed. "My Damon..." she sighed._

_He rolled them on the floor and her back was now pressed on the floor. He spread her legs with one knee and pushed his body on hers. He slowly kissed her jaw line, her chin and bit on her lip before claiming her mouth again. Her lips parted and he invaded her mouth with his tongue._

_Her hands gripped the hem of his T-shirt and she pulled if off over his head. She threw it somewhere and she fisted her hand in his hair to kiss him again. Her hands skimmed on his chest and stomach until they reached for his belt making Damon growl. She unfastened it and she could feel his arousal pressing against her core. _

_When he bit her on the crook of her neck she arched her back and he groaned aloud._

"_Elena... My angel..." he breathed._

"_I want you..." Elena was panting._

"_I want you too. More than you know..." he said._

"_Then, take me." she said unzipping his fly._

_Their lips collided almost desperately. His hands gripped on her clothes to take them off of her. He cupped her breasts and left a trail of kisses on her neck to her collarbone. Damon pushed her bra up to free her breasts and she moaned when his lips closed on one hardened nipple._

"_Yes... Damon..."_

_He bit lightly on the sweet pebble and sucked harder on it. Her hand grasped solidly on his shoulder and she pushed him down urging him to keep going lower. He kissed her flat stomach and undid the button and fly of her jeans. He hooked his thumbs in it and tugged her jeans and panties all at once down her leg._

_Damon knelt between her legs and grabbed her left ankle to place it on his shoulder. He slowly kissed her ankle and nibbled his way up to where she needed him the most. With a solid grip on her hips, he bit her inner thigh then ran his tongue over the sweet love bite._

"_Damon!" she cried out._

_Still holding her hips, Damon started to tease her sensitive flesh. He lapped on her wet folds and circled his tongue around her clit. He blew softly on her sex making her whole body shiver violently._

"_Damon." She groaned. "Oh God, yes!" he hissed under the intense pleasure._

_She wanted him. She wanted more, a lot more. She never wanted something or someone like she did in this moment so she grabbed the back of his head and pulled him up so she could kiss him again. She could taste herself in his mouth and it drove her crazy._

_Elena seemed to remember he was still wearing his jeans and she pushed them down. He quickly took them off and placed himself between her thighs. He teased her entrance a few time with the tip of his cock before sliding slowly into her inch by inch. He waited a little to let her adjust to his size and he started to move. _

_Elena wrapped her legs around his waist and her hands glided on his muscular back to his shoulder blade. He kissed her hard and she fisted one hand in his hair while the other gripped the back of his neck. _

_Elena moved with him; meeting him thrust for thrust. She could feel something powerful building inside her. Something that was ready to burst. She held onto him strongly with her eye squeezed shut. She was so close she could see stars behind her closed eyes. And she did, exploding around him. It wasn't long before he followed her._

"_Damon." she murmured._

"_Elena." He mumbled._

_They remained immobile, sprawled on the floor just enjoying the feeling of their naked bodies. Elena finally opened her eyes and was met by... the ceiling?_

She jolted up in her bed. She desperately looked everywhere trying to catch her ragged breath. She put a hand on her chest to calm her heartbeat. She brushed the hair out of her face and held her head in her head. What was that? Did she really have that dream? That really vivid and sexy dream? She couldn't see herself right now but she knew she was probably flushed by the fire she felt on her cheek. A fire she felt everywhere...

She got on her feet, surprised she could stand on her shaky legs and walked slowly toward the bathroom. She glanced at her alarm clock; it was around six am. A groan escaped her lips and ended in a sigh. She would need to be up soon even if she didn't have to go to work today.

She opened her door and turned on the light. Elena let out a short scream when she came face to face with Damon whom just happened to open his door at the same time as her. He looked as shocked as her. He almost looked panicked. Her heart quickened and she flushed again at the fresh memory of her dream.

She looked down and her eyes widened when she noticed his boxers and his prominent bulge in it. She quickly looked up, looked everywhere but him. Her hand clasped on her eyes and she turned around flushing even more.

And once again she fled like a coward. The last thing she heard was Damon curse.

* * *

><p>AN: Hello Delena lovers! I hope you're all doing fine!

This is really short, I apologize. I wish I could write long chapters all the time for all my stories. I promise to work on that.

This was what I call an 'in between chapter'. I'm well aware that this story could have continued without this one but I wanted to treat you (and myself) with a little sexy action!

On another hand, I think their dreams only prove that they're attracted and affected by each other. Who knows... Maybe it'll be a wakeup call for that will lead them to real stuff!

I hope you like it. Please let me know and leave a review.

Thank you for reading this story. It means the world to me!

Take care,

Love,

Eve xo

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><p>Twitter: titeve79<p>

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><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	8. A New Day

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 8~

~A New Day~

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><p>Elena tried to keep herself busy in the kitchen. She couldn't remember a time when she was more embarrassed. First she had kissed Damon last night, then she had dreamed a very vivid dream about him and then she had walked on him half naked in their bathroom. She flushed just remembering the size of his bulge. She ran her hand in her long chocolate hair. <em>Think about something else. Think about something else, damn it!<em>

As an answering to her prayers, her cats, Boone and Ian, stroked themselves on her ankles all purring. She looked down at them and crouched to caress their heads between their ears. She was greeted with more purring and mewing. She laughed when the black one tried to jump on her lap.

"You guys are hungry?" She cooed. "Yeah, I bet you're hungry." She giggled.

She filled their bowls with foods and fresh water and the cat fought to eat in the same bowl. She scratched them beneath their ears and laughed softly.

"Hey! There's enough for both of you!"

The cats completely ignored her and kept eating like there was no tomorrow. She watched them for a while with a soft smile on her face, but then she sighed and walked to the fridge. Way to go Elena! Two minutes without thinking of him!

Elena opened the fridge and picked the orange juice and the eggs carton. She decided that making herself breakfast would keep her mind busy enough to make her think about something other than running upstairs and kissing him again until they both pass out of exhaustion.

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><p>Damon was sitting on the edge of his bed with his elbows resting on his knees and his face in his hands. Why? Why did all this happen to him? Why did he meet her? Why did was she so generous to him? Why did she kiss him and why did he kiss her? And why, oh why, did she walk on him this morning? A few years ago he would have laughed his ass off at the situation and he definitely wouldn't have been embarrassed by it. On the contrary, he would have taken advantage of it... Now everything would be complicated.<p>

He raked his hands in his tousled raven hair and looked at the clock on the nightstand. It was six thirty. He should be leaving for work. The Grill would open in an hour and he thought he should be there early and familiarize himself more with the place.

Damon snorted. Work. He didn't get a job in what... almost two years? He couldn't remember. This made him nervous. He knew he would be okay in a kitchen; cooking was always easy for him and he used to love to cook when things were different, but he couldn't help to feel nervous.

And the fact that in a few minutes he would see Elena again made his heart raced. He would have to face her and they would have to talk about what happened. He could already picture her telling him that it was a mistake, that the kiss shouldn't have happened and that it could not happen again. He could even picture her telling him that he should leave.

The thought depressed him. He knew this situation was only temporary and that she only invited him in her house until he was better, which he was. He knew his 'job' was temporary too but he didn't want it to end. It had nothing to do with the fact that he had a roof over his head or that he could eat whenever he wanted to or that he would make a bit of money. He didn't want to leave because he'd miss her. Too much...

Damon slowly made his way downstairs and went to the kitchen. His eyes widened when he heard a loud yelp followed by a thud on the floor. He walked in the kitchen as fast as he could with his wounded hip and found her near the oven holding her hand. At her feet was a frying pan with burnt scrambled eggs.

"Elena? Are you okay?" She watched him getting near her with a concerned look on his face.

"I burnt myself." She tried to control her voice.

He walked her to the sink and turned the faucet of cold water on. He gently grabbed her hand and brought it under the running water. The cool liquid soothed her redden skin but the touch of his fingers on her hand started a fire somewhere else that had nothing to do with burnt eggs.

"Thank you..." She said softly avoiding looking at him.

"Just keep your hand under the water while I clean."

She finally looked up at him.

"Damon, you don't have too."

"It's okay. I still have a little time before I go to work." He shrugged and picked up the frying pan from the floor.

"That's right! You're first real day of work." She smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm nervous." He admitted and threw the uneatable eggs into the trash can.

"I'm sure it'll go just fine, Damon." She assured him. "Just don't overcook the eggs like I did and you'll be just fine." She tried to lighten up the mood.

He nodded with a small smile and put the frying pan on the oven.

"How's your hand?" He changed the subject.

She closed the faucet and gently wiped her hand with a towel. Once she looked up, Damon was standing next to her.

"Can I see? Your hand?"

Elena didn't answer. She only gave him her hand and Damon carefully lifted it to examine it. It was red but there was no blister or anything else so her burn was superficial. Damon gently massaged her hand, drawing tiny circles on the back of it.

Elena felt her heart quicken. Memories of her dream and images resurfacing made her want to combust. Their gaze met and her lips parted. She watched mesmerized when his head dipped toward hers. He kissed her cheek, his lips barely brushing her skin in a soft feathery caress.

"I should go..." He only said and then he was gone.

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><p>Damon arrived at The Grill at seven but the door was still closed. He looked around but the street was deserted. He closed in his forehead to the window and tried to look inside but there was no one there. Maybe he was just too early... He huffed. What was he thinking? He never thought this thing would go this far when he started 'this' two years ago...<p>

The sound of an old pickup truck approaching disturbed him from his thoughts. He saw Matt climbed out of it and walking toward him. He was wearing the blue shirt from The Grill and had a set of keys in his hand.

"Hey, man!" Matt said genuinely nice. "You're here early."

"I thought I should." Damon shrugged. "You know... To know where everything is and get used to the place more."

"That's great man. But you did very well yesterday. I'm sure you'll have no problems." Matt said unlocking the door. "And we'll have both waitresses today with us." He opened the door and walked inside holding it for Damon who followed him.

Matt relocked the door since it was too early to open and then switched the lights on. Damon followed him unsure of what to do. Luckily for him, Matt told him before he looked like a lost puppy.

"So, Damon... Since you'll be our cook for a while, why don't you just go in the kitchen? Usually, Charlie starts by preparing the dough for the pancakes and then he slices the salads and some vegetables for later. You know... All the stuff that can be done in advance..."

"Okay."

Matt chuckled. "Man, you look nervous."

Damon shrugged again. "It's been a while since I did something like this..."

"Don't be. You were great yesterday and like I said... We'll have waitresses today so I'll have the time to help you. If there's something just ask me."

"Thank you..." he frowned.

Matt chuckled again and shook his head.

"Really, Damon, you'll do great."

* * *

><p>Elena was proud of the little progress she just made on her article. It was far from being finished but at least she succeeded in starting it. In fact she just wrote down her thoughts and impressions of the little time she spent out there. She wrote down the notes she hadn't put on paper yet. She made sure not to forget the old lady that was nice enough to buy her a sandwich and a coffee. There hadn't been any judgment or disgust in the elder woman... Just pure compassion.<p>

That had been very different from the rest of the people that had crossed her way... The stupid teenagers that had thrown chips at her laughing like this had been the funniest joke on earth and the man that had yelled at her to find a job. How could she forget the pervert and his condom? She was practically sure he had winked at her. What had hit her the most, though, was how indifferent people had been... was and probably still would be.

She sighed. Elena was still debating whether she should talk about Damon or not. She should ask for his permission first. It was his life after all and even if she wouldn't mention his name he had the right to know.

Elena looked at the time. It was ten thirty, now. She wondered how it was going for him. She hoped it was doing well but she had no doubt about it. The breakfast he had done for her was simply delicious. She groaned and stared at her hand. _And you can't even cook scrambled eggs... _she muttered to herself.

She closed her eyes. Damon... Never a man had affected her this much. She didn't even know his full name and he was still a complete stranger, yet, she was drawn to him like she never was to anybody. A part of her regretted to have fled last night. The feeling of their perfectly molded lips together had been exhilarating. She had felt so much passion coming from both of them...

She shuddered at the sweet memory...

* * *

><p>Damon finally sat on a stool at the bar to take his first break of the day. It was now eleven and the first half of the day went away before he even knew it.<p>

"How's the day so far?" Matt asked while sitting on the stool next to him.

"Crazy." Damon replied with a deep sigh. "Haven't work this much in a long time." He admitted.

"This place is crazy sometimes." Matt chuckled. "But you'll have an hour to rest a bit. Usually at this hour we have only a few client and they order coffee. The lunch rush starts around noon and ends near two."

"I'll take the rest." Damon chuckled. "I don't want to complain but after four hours of nonstop work, it feels to sit down."

"I know the feelings. Don't worry about it."

A phone rang and Matt got up.

"I'll get it. Enjoy your break!" Matt patted his shoulder.

Damon slowly sipped on his coffee. The morning had flown away in a blink of an eye. He didn't have the time to think about anything else but eggs, omelets, pancakes and waffles. But now that he was at the bar, doing nothing but drink coffee all he could think about was Elena.

"Hello, new guy." A flirtatious voice came behind him. "I'm Vicky."

Damon turned his face toward the voice and was faced by a smiling sandy blonde. Her curly hair waved around her face and her big eyes staring at him like he was the sweetest of sundaes. She bit on her lower lip and hopped on the stool next to him.

"How's the first day going?" Vicky asked checking him out slowly up and down.

"Okay, so far."

"I've never seen you before..." She played with her hair. "Are you new in town?"

"Yeah... I'm new." Damon took a gulp of his coffee.

Vicky's eyes lit up like the Christmas lights. "Maybe I can show you around..." She bit on her lip again and put her hand on his arm.

"It's really nice of you... Vicky. But... hum... I'm staying at a friend's house. I don't want to take advantage of her generosity." Damon explained.

Vicky was extremely beautiful and a long time ago he would have said yes without thinking twice about it. But truth be told... She had nothing on Elena...

"Oh..." She pouted. "I'm sure your friend wouldn't mind." She smiled. "And I can be very friendly too." Her fingers stroked his arm and she winked at him.

"Vick! You have tables to clean." Matt came back.

The sandy blonde huffed in annoyance.

"I'm on my break too, Matt." She scowled at him.

"You already took it thirty minutes ago, Vick."

"I'm busy, here." Her long fingers were still stroking Damon's arm.

Matt rolled his eyes. "Vicky Donovan... The tables. Now."

Vicky huffed again. "I'll talk to you later." She winked at Damon.

With a last scowl at her brother she walked away toward the other waitress and they started talking in whispers sending glances in Damon's direction.

"I apologize for my sister behavior." Matt told him.

"She's your sister?"

"Yep. Very annoying, I know, but I still love her."

"Is that your way to tell me to stay away?" He couldn't help but smirk.

Matt laughed loudly. "You can say that. But not for the reasons you think. Like I said... I love her to no ends but the girl's middle name is trouble." Matt face fell a little. "I try to take care of her the best I can but ever since our mother left... It's only the two of us since she's fourteen. But honestly I didn't know how to take care of a teenage girl when I was barely an adult myself." Matt sighed and shook his head. "Do I look like a mother? Seriously?" He tried to joke.

"You both seem great. I mean you both have a job. She seems to be fine. I think you did great."

"Are you flattering me to get an augmentation? Already?" Matt chuckled.

Damon smiled slightly, a vague trace of bittersweet feeling on his face.

"I know we don't know each other for long but from what I can see... It could have been a lot worst... You can trust me on that." Damon drank the last drop of his coffee."

Matt frowned. "You sound like you know what I'm talking about."

"I have a younger brother. I used to watch over him after the death of our mother." He sighed. "I just wish I had done things differently." Damon shrugged and Matt frown deepened. "Sorry, man. I usually don't talk about that crap." Damon scoffed.

"That's okay. I'm not much of a talker either." Matt slid off his stool. "Break's over anyway."

"I'll go back to the kitchen." Damon replied getting off his stool too.

* * *

><p>Elena pushed her cart in the local grocery store. She had the intention of trying to cook something for Damon to celebrate his first day at The Grill. Or at least she would attempt to cook something without burning the house this time.<p>

Her eyes fell on her reddened hand and her lips curled up and her eyes closed when she remembered Damon kissing her cheek. She knew she was starting to fall for him and she didn't know how to react to it.

"I love ice cream too, Elena." A bubbly voice cut her off her sweet day dream. "But what this one has that's so special to make you smile like a school girl?"

Elena looked up to be faced by a smirking Caroline. She could feel herself blushing.

"Caroline! Hi!" Elena giggled and hugged her friend before kissing both her cheeks.

"So?" The blonde inquired.

Elena giggled again. "Nothing, actually. I was just thinking about something."

Caroline's eyes lit up. "Something or someone?" She waggled her perfectly shaped eyebrows.

Elena blushed even more and avoided her friend's gaze.

"I knew it!" Caroline squealed loud enough for other costumers to glance toward them. "Who is it?"

"Caroline, please."

"Come on... don't be a party pooper and tell your best friend." She pouted and did her best puppy face.

"There's nothing to say, Caroline."

Caroline sighed dramatically. "Fine! Be that way. I'll find out anyway." She winked.

Elena rolled her eyes. What was she supposed to say? There wasn't anything going on between her and Damon. Right?

"I just have a friend staying home for a while."

The eyes of the bubbly blonde lit up again and she clasped her hands together.

"So, there is someone..." She smiled.

Elena picked a tub of chocolate ice cream in the freezer and dropped it in her cart.

"Just an old friend, Caroline. There's nothing going on, here."

"Can I at least know his name?"

Elena scoffed. "I never said it was a man."

"Pluh-ease!" The blonde began. "We wouldn't be having this conversation if it was a woman."

"He's just a friend..." Elena mumbled.

"But you'd like him to be more?"

Elena blushed. "I... I don't know, to be honest."

The girls kept walking on the alley and Caroline hooked her arms to Elena's one.

"Well... We're just going to have to find out!" She quipped.

* * *

><p>Elena stirred the Bolognese sauce. It was a family recipe and this was one of the things she could cook without destroying the kitchen or poisoning anyone. All she would have to do next was to cook the pasta that would go with her Bolognese. She only needed to wait to Damon to come back. She nervously glanced at the time; it was four thirty-five. He should be home soon.<p>

Right on cue, she heard a door opening slowly. She could almost hear the hesitation in his steps, like he wasn't sure if he could come in. She decided to go and welcome him. The second she saw him her heart started to race and she felt the warmth on her cheeks. He really was the most handsome man she laid her eyes on.

"Hey! How was your day?" She asked smiling.

Damon made a few steps toward her. He was standing before her, only one foot of her. Their eyes glued to the others and her lips parted.

"I think it went well." He finally answered and ran a hand in his hair looking away. "It smells good." He then told after sniffing the air.

"Thank you. It's the Bolognese sauce. I'm making spaghetti for dinner. This is probably the only thing I can cook without burning anything." She giggled and his eyes darkened.

"You can go shower if you like." Elena said and took one step back. "I'll start the pasta just after. If you're hungry, that is."

Damon chuckled. "I'm starving, to be honest. I cooked all day but barely had the time to eat myself."

"Busy day, huh?"

"Very..." he smiled.

They fell into an awkward silence. Damon cleared his throat and pointed to the staircase.

"I better go shower now." And for the second time today, just like that, he was gone.

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><p>Damon and Elena were sitting at the little table in the kitchen. He swirled his spaghetti around his fork and brought the mouthful to his lips. Elena looked at him, anxious. She hoped he would like it. When he closed his eyes and groaned his appreciation to the meal, Elena felt very pleased with herself.<p>

"You like it?"

"Hmm mmm." He nodded his mouth still full of the delicious food.

"Good. Because it's probably the only thing I can cook." She let out a soft giggle.

"It's really good." He smiled.

They kept eating in a comfortable silence. The comfort quickly was replaced by nervousness. Neither one of them had talked, yet, about what happened last night and this morning. Elena tried to keep her eyes on her plate but a quick glance in Damon's direction told her he was looking at her.

Her heart raced again and like she always done when she was nervous, she started laughing. At first it was only soft giggles that she tried to cover with her hand on her mouth but it ended up in loud laughs. Her laughs slowly came to an end when she saw Damon's frown.

"I'm sorry... I always do that when I'm nervous..." She looked down to her plate.

Damon swallowed hard and put down his fork on the table.

"I make you nervous?" His pulse quickened. To be honest he was nervous to.

She nodded and blushed. "Damon..." She began. "I think we need to talk."

"Need to talk?" His voice was low.

She nodded again.

"About what happened last night..." Her voice was as low as his.

This was it, he thought. She would tell him that what happened was a mistake and that it should not happen again. Maybe she would ask him to leave... He didn't want to leave...

"That's okay Elena. I understand."

She frowned. "Huh?"

"It won't happen again." He sounded resigned.

"Damon... I..."

"Don't worry, Elena. Like I said... I understand. It's okay if you regret it."

Elena could hear the hurt in his voice and it broke her heart. That was not what she wanted to say or do.

"Maybe I should go." He continued.

Go? Where? She didn't want him to go!

"Elena... Thank you for everything that you've done for me." He got up on his feet. "But I think it's best for both of us if I just leave."

Elena jumped on her feet and went to stand in front of him.

"Damon, I don't want you to go. I want you to stay." She said adamant, surprising both of them with her tone.

"Elena..."

She grabbed his hands in hers. "I don't regret it, Damon." She told him. "I ran last night because I panicked." Her heart was racing. "I enjoyed the kiss very much..." She whispered.

He shook his head. "Elena... The only thing I'm thinking of since we've met is you... And right now... If I don't leave..." He sighs deeply. "All I want to do is kiss you again and take you upstairs."

Her eyes widened and her lips parted. She could feel the desire pooling and aching down to her core. Her hands gripped tighter on his.

"Why don't you?" She breathed.

* * *

><p>AN: I'm so evil! Muahahahaha!

Please forgive me for stopping there. (puppy eyes) I wasn't supposed to. Damon was supposed to be very happy at the end of this chapter... I promise he will in the next one. The next chapter won't take more than a few days to be updated because half of it is already written. Maybe I'll just make the next chapter really short so you can read it in a week top. (more puppy eyes) I know just like me, you all want Damon to get some lovin'! Don't worry he will!

In the future chapters, Delena will obviously become more and more closer.

Don't forget that Caroline and Stefan are engaged and that Caroline and Elena are friends... The two brothers will eventually come face to face...

We'll also learn more about Damon's secrets and if he's really who he claims to be...

Please, please, please! Let me know what you think and leave a review! (even if I'm evil)

Take care,

Eve xo

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><p>Twitter: titeve79<p>

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><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	9. A New Start

A/N: Hello! Hope you all doing great! Can you believe the five months hiatus is almost over already? Wow! TVD's back this week and I'm really excited. (Even if we'll have to deal with more SE moments in the beginning) I'm sure, at least I hope, there will be lots of hot moments between Damon and Elena this season. We've been more then patient. We've waited for far too long. It's Delena time!

As I promised you last week, here's the (too) small chapter you were waiting for. I apologize for its shortness; it's actually the missing part of the previous one. It's an 'in between' chapter. I'll be back to the storyline on the next chapter.

Please enjoy and pretty please with a Damon on top (Sorry Kate, I've stolen your line) review :)

Take care,

Eve xo

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><p>Twitter: titeve79<p>

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><p>You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart<p>

Chapter 9

~A New Start~

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><p><em>Previously on You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart<em>

_He shook his head. "Elena... The only thing I'm thinking of since we've met is you... And right now... If I don't leave..." He sighs deeply. "All I want to do is kiss you again and take you upstairs."_

_Her eyes widened and her lips parted. She could feel the desire pooling and aching down to her core. Her hands gripped tighter on his._

"_Why don't you?" She breathed._

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><p>Damon took a sharp intake of breath trying to assess what he just heard. He gazed intently at her face, trying to find an answer to his unspoken question. He searched for any hint that could tell him that she didn't mean what she just told him but he couldn't find any. Her brown doe eyes were wide open and filled with something that looked like desire and lust. Her lips were parted and though, he couldn't hear it, he knew her breath was ragged.<p>

With the pad of his thumb he could feel her quick pulse under her wrist. He tentatively lifted his other hand and softly tucked a loose strand of her chocolate hair behind her ear. Damon watched her shivering when his fingers ghosted on the shell of her ear. He let his thumb slowly stroking her cheek and she unconsciously leaned on the feathery caress.

Elena covered his hand with hers, turned her head and gently kissed the palm of his hand. Damon felt his entire bloodstream rush south from this simple display of affection. He couldn't think about anything but the beautiful angel in front of him.

It was like time froze. The only movement in the room was his thumb slowly skating from her cheek to her lower lip. Elena inhaled softly when Damon's head dipped to hers for the second time today. Her eyes closed as his lips brushed against hers tentatively at first. His fingers curled in her and he pulled her head closer to his so he could deepen the kiss.

Elena let out a small moan, practically inaudible, but he still heard it. The pressure of his lips became harder, almost harsher, but the kiss remained slow like they were testing the feeling of the kiss more than tasting the flavor of it.

He fisted his other hand in her hair and tilted her head on the side so he could deepen the kiss even more. He groaned when her teeth bit in his bottom lip to tug on it. Damon backed them up until the small of her back hit the counter top behind her and without losing any more times, he pushed his tongue into her mouth.

Elena grabbed his waist and pulled him closer to her as her tongue stroked and swirled around Damon's. He winced when she squeezed his hip and she immediately broke the kiss.

"I'm sorry." She said panting.

"Don't care..." He mumbled before he crashed his lips on hers again.

Her hands slid on his chest and wrapped themselves around his neck. She lifted herself on her tiptoes so she could kiss him more easily and Damon picked her up and sat her on the counter top. His lips left her mouth and his teeth gently scrapped her jaw before his mouth was on the length of her neck.

"Damon..." She breathed. "What are. We. Doing?" She said panting between each word.

Damon ran the tip of his nose from her neck to her cheek and dropped his forehead on hers.

"Kissing..." He bit on her lip.

"Not what I meant." She whispered.

"You want to stop." He said more as a fact than as a question.

Elena looked at him in the eyes and after a few seconds of silence she finally answered.

"No, I don't..."

It's all it took, these three simple words, for them to completely unleash the passion between them. Elena's hands gripped his hair while they began to kiss passionately; their tongue moving against one another in a scorching dance.

Damon's hand slid under her shirt and teased the skin of her flat stomach before going up. He groaned in her mouth when she tugged his shirt off his pants. She broke the kiss just enough to pull his shirt over his head and threw it on the floor. His hands slid up and down her thighs and to her behind that he squeezed lightly pulling her closer to his growing erection. Elena slid off the counter and her hand reached for the button of his pants.

Everything was going so fast, neither of them realized they had sunk to the floor. Damon rolled them so she was on her back and he was hovering above her. Elena pushed his pants down on his legs and he helped her getting rid of them.

Damon straddled her and grabbed the hem of her shirt and slid it off over her head exposing her beautiful olive skin and a white lacy bra. His shaft was throbbing almost painfully as his hands caressed her skin softly. Their gaze locked together and Elena could see something close to adoration in his eyes. She covered his hands with hers and brought them to her breasts.

With a groan, Damon lowered himself and kissed the soft spot of her neck and Elena arched her back pushing her breasts in his hands. He reached behind her back to unclasp her bra and he slowly slid the straps from her shoulders and tossed the lacy bra somewhere in the kitchen.

Damon's lips kept nipping on the warm skin of her neck and trailed slowly down to her collarbone. She moaned aloud when his tongue swirled around her nipple and his lips closed around the sensitive erected peak. Her hand was in his hair and the other on his shoulder pushing on them slightly to urge him to keep going lower. And he did...

He trailed kisses after kisses on her ribs her stomach, his tongue licked around her bellybutton and he kept going down slowly. Damon unbuttoned her jeans and undid her fly. He hooked his fingers in the waistband and pushed them down her legs. He gently parted her legs and placed a kiss on her inner thigh just above her knee and this time, his trail of kisses went up until he reached her core. Damon kissed her over her panties and she moaned.

"Damon... Please..." It was a breathy whisper.

He hovered above her again, his body deliciously pressing onto hers and their lips met again. With the pressing need he had of her, Damon knew he wouldn't last long. He wanted her too much and it has been too long since he was with somebody that way.

They were soon completely naked on her kitchen floor but neither one of them cared.

"You have to tell me." He was panting. "If you want to stop, you have to tell me now." He said half whispering half groaning. "Because soon I won't be able to..."

Elena cupped his face and brushed her nose against his.

"I want this... I want you..."

It was the last confirmation he needed. He slowly sank in her deep warm and wet core making both of them hiss in pleasure. He started to move in and out of her in a slow pace at first but the pleasure was too intense... too strong. It has been too long since he was with someone and it was her... his angel...

He hid his face in the crook of her neck and she fisted a hand in his hair holding him solidly. Her legs wrapped around him and cradled him tight. She moved with him, meeting him thrust for thrust. Her moans turned into groans and Damon let out a loud grunt.

"I... won't last long... will be fast." He mumbled incoherently.

She only pulled on his hair so their lips could meet again and she kissed him hard. Damon could not hold back anymore and he released himself into her and collapsed on her soft body. He lifted his head and looked shamefully into her eyes.

"Fuck... Elena... I'm sorry." His voice was low.

She frowned while her hands gently stroked his back.

"Why?" She whispered.

"I... You didn't... I didn't made you c-"

She hushed him with both her index and middle fingers on his lips.

"It's okay, Damon." Her fingers stroked his cheek. "We have all night..."

* * *

><p>They were both lying in her bed, resting peacefully in the other's embrace. He was on his back and she was curled next to his side with her head on his shoulder and a hand on his chest. His fingers caressed the length of her spine softly up and down and she sighed of contentment.<p>

They had made love over and over again and this time she hadn't been left hanging. Far from it. Damon had cherished and worshiped her body for hours and she had found her release many, many times. Her orgasms had been intense and powerful leaving her shivering from her head to her curled toes.

She lifted her head to meet two intense and adoring eyes gazing at her. She couldn't hide her blush.

"Hi." She whispered.

He smiled softly. "Hi."

"What time is it?" She yawned a little.

"Almost two in the morning." He brushed her hair out of her face.

"It's late..." She kissed his lips tenderly. "You should sleep." Her lips brushed again his jaw... his neck.

Damon closed his eyes and sighed holding her tight to him.

"I don't want to..."

Elena moved to straddle him. The sheet that was covering her chest pooled down around the small of her back and her long hair covered her bared breast. Damon ran his hands on her thighs and he gripped her small waist. Her fingers slowly traced the shape of his fading bruises. Most of them were turning yellow except for his hip that was still blue and purple.

His erection stirred under her and she leaned down to kiss him. She bit on his earlobe and tugged lightly on it. With the tip of her tongue she traced the shell of his ear. She kissed his cheek.

"Me neither." She whispered in his ear.

And they got lost again in each other. The slow and soft kiss became quickly heated. Her hand found his hard length between them and guided him into her. Once he filled her completely to the hilt she started moving slowly on him. She moved up and down, back and forth. She undulated her hips on him and he groaned.

She sensed another orgasm building and she began to move faster... harder. He gripped her hips solidly and helped her move on him. His hips jerked up meeting her every movement.

"Damon!" She cried out.

"Ele-na!" He grunted.

Her walls closed on his length and she exploded around him. After a few other thrusts, Damon found his own release again. She collapsed on his chest panting and she nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck. Her body was hot and sweaty. Boy, she would need a good shower in the morning! Her thought made her smile and giggle.

"Something's amusing you?" He asked softly.

She shook her head.

"I'm just happy..." She breathed in his neck.

Damon remained silent for a few seconds.

"Me too... Finally."

"I'm happy you're happy." She said and then giggled again.

Damon smiled and hugged her tighter.

"Goodnight, Elena."

"Goodnight, Damon."

They both fell asleep not long after that.

* * *

><p>The next morning Elena woke up with a huge grin plastered on her face. Last night had been simply magical. She turned on her side to see an empty space and she frowned. She wrapped the sheet around her and sat in the middle of the bed. She looked at her alarmed; it was only six thirty. Maybe he already left for work, she thought.<p>

But the door opened and Damon came in with a huge mug of coffee in his hand. His hair was still damp from the shower he had taken. He walked to the bed and she knelt in it. She couldn't stop smiling. He was so gorgeous; it was hard to believe he was actually real. When she looked at him she had this image of a god in her mind.

"Hey" He said. "Good morning." He gave her the coffee. "I wanted to make you breakfast in bed but I woke up to late." He almost looked sheepish.

With a huge grin she turned around and put her coffee on her nightstand. Then she grabbed his face and kissed him. It didn't take long before he held her against him and he groaned into her mouth. Elena pulled him to her and they fell on the mattress. Her legs wrapped around him and she felt him hardening.

"I have to go to work." He groaned between kisses.

"Stay with me..." She bit on his lips.

"I wish I could..."

"You can call in sick." She suggested her hands finding their way under his shirt.

Damon felt his crotch twitch.

"Not on my first week." He kissed her neck.

Elena pushed him back a little. She felt really bad at this moment. Of course he needed this job. She couldn't ask him to ditch it for her. She couldn't be that selfish.

"Of course you can't. I'm sorry for asking."

He stared at her like he was mesmerized.

"Don't be... I wish I could stay... You have no idea..."

She smiled again.

"I'll see you tonight?"

"Absolutely."

"Good!" She pushed him off of her. "Go to work. I need to shower anyway." She jumped out of her bed and held the sheet to her body and walked past him.

He grabbed her waist making her squeal and he crushed her body to his.

"Just one more..." And his lips were on hers.

"You're going to be late..." She broke the kiss and he sighed.

"I'll miss you."

"Me too." She breathed. "Maybe I'll think of you when I shower..."

He growled at her and she giggled. He dropped one last kiss on her lips and then he was gone. This day would definitely be a new start. For both of them.

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: Damn it! I own nothing... :p


	10. Secrets Unveiled Almost

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 10~

~Secrets unveiled... Almost~

* * *

><p>It was a lazy and quiet day at The Grill today with only a few clients and Damon wasn't sure whether he should be thrilled or not about it. On one hand, active work would have kept his mind busy. It would have forced him to think about something else than his night with Elena. But now that there were practically no clients, he had nothing to do but think and daydream. On the other hand, being too busy could have been dangerous. He couldn't concentrate nor focus on anything. Just with the few breakfast he had cooked this morning he had already cut and burned himself a bunch of time.<p>

He couldn't help the whirlwind of emotions that took him over. He still couldn't believe that last night had been real, but at the same time, his mind and body couldn't forget what had happened. He could still taste her sweet lips and feel the softness of her warm skin. The way she had kissed him, touched him... loved him. The trust she'd had in him to let him make love to her. Him, a worthless nobody... a liar...

He knew he would have to tell her everything he hadn't yet. He needed to, he owed her the truth. He would have to tell her exactly who he was and what he was doing here, in Mystic Falls. The thing was he didn't know if she would want to see him afterward. The thought of that idea made in ache. The thought of losing her, hurt more than anything else.

Damon left the kitchen and walked behind the bar to grab some coffee. He waved at Matt who was cleaning a table. There were only two persons in The Grill and they already had been served. Damon had nothing to do but to get lost in his memories again. Memories of them tangled in the sheets, tangled in each other. Her touch and her kisses. The sound of her moans, her hands in his hair, her nails gripping on his shoulders, her legs cradling his hips...

Damon shifted on his stool feeling suddenly uncomfortable. His pants felt way too tight in this instant. He looked discretely around him. Thank goodness, no one was paying attention to him. He sighed. He definitely would have to talk with her after his shift.

"Hello, Damon." The flirty voice of Vicky came behind him.

"Hello, Vicky." He answered politely.

"Quiet day, isn't it?"

Damon nodded while she hopped on the stool next to him. She rested her elbow on the counter and held her head in her hand. She eyed him intently and nibbled on her bottom lip. It was clear to Damon that she was on flirty mode again.

"Maybe lunch time will be busier." He suggested.

"Maybe..." She said and her hand reached for his arm and she gave him another seductive smile. "But until then... maybe you and I can get to know each other." She winked.

_Not a chance in this life, _Damon thought.

"I was thinking we could take a rain check on my yesterday's offer to show you around?" Her fingers drew circles on his arm. "You know... since you're new in town."

Damon inwardly groaned and chewed on his words. He yanked his arm as softly as he could out of her fingers and ran his hand in his raven hair. Vicky was a nice girl but he had zero interest in her. He didn't want to be rude to the girl though; there was no need for that. He just wished she would leave him alone.

"That's really nice of you, Vicky." He started with a light smile. "But my friend already gave me a tour." Damon hoped she would believe him and just let go.

"Oh... That's too bad..." She pouted. "Maybe we could hang out after our shift?" She asked with hope.

"I'm sorry, Vicky. I don't think so..."

Vicky slid down her stool and huffed. "Whatever. That's your lost."

"I'm sorry..." He said again as Vicky walked away angrily toward the empty tables and pretended to wipe them with her cleaning rag.

There was a snicker behind him and Damon snapped his head toward the sound. Matt was shaking his head. He was holding empty plates and went to the kitchen with them. When he came back he grabbed some coffee for himself and leaned on the bar to face Damon.

"Don't worry, man." Matt chuckled. "She'll get over it... one day." Matt laughed again.

"Thanks... I guess." Damon frowned.

* * *

><p>Elena stirred in her chair with her arms high above her head before dropping them beside her. She shut her laptop off and gripped onto the armrest of her chair and pulled herself up on her feet. Elena tilted her head from one side to another with a hand holding the nape of her neck.<p>

Her article was almost ready. The only things left to do were showing it to Damon first and then make last minute corrections. She still wanted Damon's approval because it was important to her. It wasn't that she mentioned his name or any specifics about that night when they met but she didn't want him to think she was using him to pimp her article.

She rubbed her temples with her fingers. The migraine was coming back and she needed her painkillers. As she slowly climbed the stairs she found herself smiling. She wondered how Damon was doing and she wondered if he was thinking of her at this instant. She bit on her lips when she walked into her room. Her gaze went to her bed that was still undone and images of their night together popped in her mind.

Her smile turned into a stupid grin when she entered her bathroom. She met her reflection in the mirror and she couldn't help the giggles that came from her mouth when she saw her face in it. With a shake of her head she opened the mirrored door of the cabinet above the sink. She raised her hand to grab her medication and was stopped in her track. Right in front of her face was standing a box of condoms. Realisation just hit her that they hadn't used any last night... more than once.

_Oh no, no, no... _Elena covered her face in her hands. How could she had been so stupid? It wasn't her usual self to act like this... But last night... Everything had happened so fast.

_Oh no, no, no... _She thought again. That couldn't be happening. Not to her! Quickly she mentally tried to remember when her last periods were. Could she be pregnant? Should she be having a test? Wasn't in it too early? And what about STD? _Oh my god!_ She started to panic. What about HIV? _Shit, shit, shit!_

Completely forgetting about her migraine and her painkillers she started pacing in her bathroom. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself. Panicking now was useless. Panicking now wasn't going to change the final results. Right?

Elena sat on the edge of her bath her hands on her lap. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply through her nose. She shook her head and ran a hand in her long hair. She would have to talk to Damon about this, isn't it? God! She didn't even know his last name! She got on her feet and started pacing again. What the fuck was she going to do?

* * *

><p>As Damon thought earlier, lunch had been a lot busier than breakfast. He hadn't stopped working the kitchen for three consecutive hours. Between burgers and fries, spaghetti marinara, salads, chicken cacciatore and a few more dishes; he hadn't had a second to think.<p>

The Grill was finally quiet again. Vicky went outside to smoke a cigarette. The girl had avoided and had ignored him all day since he rejected her a second time. Not that Damon was complaining. As for Matt, he was in the kitchen with the delivery guy that provided The Grill's aliments.

Damon knew he had something to do before he talked to Elena later today. He took a quick look around him to make sure he was alone and he walked to the public phone. He put some money in it and composed the number he knew by heart. A voice answered after the third ring.

"It's me..." Damon said looking nervously around him. "... Something happened... I'm going to stop this... It's been long enough... Yes... You'll have them soon... I'll find a way... There's someone I need to speak to first... Mystic Falls... No! I don't want you here..." He said quickly. "I'll call you again as soon as possible..."

Damon hung up and ran a hand through his hair.

"Everything's okay?"

Damon spun around startled by the voice behind him. He didn't hear anyone approaching. Matt was standing just behind him and Damon wondered how much of his conversation Matt had caught.

"Is everything fine?" Matt asked again. "You look like you've been caught with your hand in the cookie jar." Matt teased.

Damon coughed a few time.

"Yeah I'm fine." He ran a hand in his hair for the hundredth time today. "Just a phone call I needed to do."

Matt raised his hands in front of himself.

"Hey, man. It's none of my business." Matt told him. "You just seemed weird. I hope you didn't get any bad news or something. "

"No bad news. Everything's fine." Damon shrugged. "Just something I should have done sooner."

"Like I said... It's none of my business. Anyway, I was looking for you. I need your help in the kitchen. The delivery guy was just here. We have a bunch of stuff to place in the storage room."

"Okay. No problem."

Damon followed Matt in the kitchen. Maybe it would keep his mind busy. He knew the next step after the phone call he just made would be to talk with Elena and that scared him. What would she say? What would she do? He just hoped she would not hate him. At least not too much.

* * *

><p>Elena was waiting in her living room for Damon to come back from work. She still didn't know how to tell him they had forgotten to use protection. She could already picture herself talking to him. <em>Hi Damon! How was your day? By the way, it's too soon to tell but I could be pregnant! <em>Yeah, talk about a wonderful homecoming. _And also, can I at least know your last name? _Jeez...

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. She hadn't been this nervous in a long time. It was past four now meaning Damon would be here any minutes. She grew more nervous and anxious with every tics of the clock. Elena nearly expired when she heard the door opening.

She jumped on her feet and rubbed her hands on her jeans. She tried to calm her heart that was beating way to fast through deep breaths but Elena ended up holding the air in her lungs when she saw him. He looked as disheveled and anxious as she was and it only made her more nervous. Something was wrong. The first thing that got through her mind was that he was leaving town.

Elena watched him walking slowly until he was just in front of her. His eyes searched for hers and Damon stood there awkwardly for a few seconds. They just stared at each other for what seemed to be an eternity.

"We need to talk."

"We need to talk."

Those four words were said at the same time by both of them. It could have almost been funny if the matter wasn't so serious.

"You go first."

"You go first."

Elena smiled lightly and rubbed her forehead. Her smile never reached her eyes, though. As for Damon, he only chuckled sadly. They would never get anything said at this point if they didn't stop saying the same things at the same time.

They both remained silent, waiting for the other one to start talking. Damon was practically sure of what she was going to say to him. She would tell him last night was a mistake that would not be repeated. Maybe she would ask him to leave... And even if she didn't, which he doubted, she definitely would after he told her everything.

Elena gazed at him. The silence in the room was disturbing. She knew he was waiting for her to say something just she was waiting for him to do the same. Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply and when she opened her eyes again she broke the silence.

"Hi." She said and never felt so stupid.

"Hi." He said feeling the same way.

"So..."

"Yeah..."

Elena scoffed uncomfortably and shook her head.

"So, we both need to talk." She told him and he nodded.

An awkward silence filled the room again. Damn it! Why was it so difficult?

"Damon, are you clean?" She blurted out the question so fast he wasn't sure he heard her right.

"Cl-clean?" He frowned.

Elena's heart was beating so fast she thought it would explode.

"Damon... Last night... We didn't use any protections."

He blanched. She was right. Things had happened so fast last night that it didn't even cross his mind before she mentioned him.

"I am." She continued. "But I need to know if you are." She was avoiding looking at him.

"Yes, I am."

Elena finally dared to look at him again.

"Are you sure?" She asked him in a whisper.

Damon understood why she could doubt him. He wasn't even angry at her.

"I'm sure."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Elena... Last night... You were my first in a very long time." He told her and he saw her blush. "I always had safe sex before... I ended up where I am. I never used drugs or shared... anything with anyone. If there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that I'm clean."

"Okay. I trust you."

"You do?" He sounded surprised.

She didn't know or couldn't explain why she did, but she trusted him. It was that simple. Maybe she was just being stupid or irrational but she believed him. If he claimed to be clean, then he was.

"Yes. I do." She told him. "And I am too. Clean, I mean. I am clean."

"I don't doubt that for a second, Elena."

He took a step closer to her and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. His fingers lingered in her hair and his thumb softly stroked her cheek. Their gazes were glued to each other and Damon wanted nothing more than to kiss her. But he didn't.

"Is that what you wanted to tell me?"

She nodded and grabbed the hand that was cupping her face. She dropped their intertwined fingers next to them with her eyes down.

"There's something else." She began slowly.

"Okay." Damon said and made a step back.

Elena looked up. Damon could see the hesitation on her face.

"Damon... I'm not on the pill..."

His eyes widened. He made another step back and then another again. The back of his knees hit the couch and he felt back on it. _I'm not on the pill, I'm not on the pill, I'm not on the pi-_

"I mean... I don't have a boyfriend. I wasn't dating either. I didn't feel the need to take it." Elena knew she was rambling but she couldn't stop. "I never did something like this. I never had a one nightstand. Not that we had one. I mean we're not in a relationship either." Elena barely breathed between words. She was starting to panic. "I don't know, Damon... You and I... It happened so fast. I don't even know your last name. I didn't think. I didn't-"

Damon got up on his feet and back to his senses and grabbed Elena by her shoulders. She was shaking and tears were forming in her eyes. He cursed in his head. How could he be so stupid? What if she was pregnant? He was definitely not ready to have a kid. That would complicate things even more that they already were.

"Elena... It's all my fault. I'm sorry."

"Damon... That's not true. I should have thought about the condoms myself."

"Do you think you could be pregnant?" He asked.

"I don't know... I don't think so." She wiped a tear from her face. "It's been only a day. It's too soon to take a test... I think."

When she started crying he took her in his arms. He didn't know what else to do. He felt like screaming. He even wanted to punch something. God this evening was the worst and he didn't even tell her anything, yet.

After a while her cries stopped. He kept holding her and stroked her hair. They were standing in the middle of her living room in each other's arms. She pulled back and locked her eyes to his.

"What am I going to do, Damon?"

"_We_ are going to wait a few days and then you'll take a test."

"We?"

"I'm not going to let you live through this alone, Elena."

There was a ghost of a smile on her lips. Somehow she knew he would react like that. And that's what she needed from him because in all honesty, she was freaking out.

"Thank you." She said and hugged him.

"What for?" He kissed her temple.

"Being like this. Being comprehensive and not running away."

Damon held her tighter. He knew he still had to talk to her, tell her everything but he wasn't sure if the timing was still right. But Elena decided for him.

"You wanted to tell me something too?" She asked still in his arms, her head on his shoulder.

Damon sighed and pulled back. He took Elena's hand and walked them to the couch where they sat next to each other.

"There are things about me you still don't know, about my life. Things I haven't told you."

"Like your last name, for starter?" She tried to joke but she was still a little shaken.

He chuckled sadly. "I should start by that, yes."

Elena grabbed his hand.

"So? What's your name?"

He looked at her for a few seconds before he opened his mouth again.

"My name is Damon Sal-"

He was cut by the doorbell. Elena was about to forget about it but the doorbell rang again and again.

"Damn it!" Elena jumped on her feet. "I'll get this." She told Damon.

Elena was inwardly cursing. She really didn't want to have visitors, especially not today. She opened the door to be faced by a very bubbly Caroline. The blonde was all smiles and practically jumping up and down.

"Hey, Elena! I brought a cake!"

The overjoyed blonde didn't wait for an answer or an invitation to come in. She walked past Elena further in the house leaving a speechless Elena at the door with Stefan. Elena didn't even see him in the first place.

Stefan walked in and closed the door. He kissed both her cheeks and pulled back.

"I'm sorry." He told her. "I try to stop her but..."

Elena gave him a knowing smile. Yes, she knew Caroline oh-too-well. The blonde was unstoppable when she had something in mind.

"It's a bad time, isn't it?" Stefan asked with a concerned look on his face.

"I wouldn't say that. It's just not the _best_ of time."

"I'm sorry." Stefan said again. "I'll try to get her to leave as soon as possible."

"Which means it's impossible." Elena found the strength to giggle.

Stefan chuckled with her. "I promise to try anyway."

"Hello!" They heard her say. "I'm Caroline!"

They both turned their heads to the sound of Caroline's voice.

"Good luck with that." Elena said.

Stefan walked to the living room and Elena followed him. They were entering the living room when she collided into Stefan's back when he stopped straight in his track. Elena stumbled back and almost fell on the floor.

"Damon?" She heard him ask.

* * *

><p>AN: I just wanted to thank every single one of you for reading and reviewing. You are all incredible! Your reviews means the world to me and I love reading all of them.

Now... What is Damon hiding? Who did he call? And what's going to happen now that the brothers are face to face? What will Elena think of this? So many questions!

Please! All I want for Christmas is... Your review! Haha! :)

Have a very Mery Beautiful Christmas. I wish you the best!

Take care.

Eve xo

* * *

><p>Twitter: titeve79<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters. All rights go to L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson.


	11. Hello, Brother

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 11~

~Hello, Brother~

* * *

><p><em>Previously on You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart<em>

_Stefan walked to the living room and Elena followed him. They were entering the living room when she collided into Stefan's back when he stopped straight in his track. Elena stumbled back and almost fell on the floor._

"_Damon?" She heard him ask_.

* * *

><p>"Stefan?" Elena had a deep frown marking her forehead. How did he know Damon?<p>

There was then a heavy silence in the room. Elena walked around Stefan and stood between the two men. She looked from Damon first and then to Stefan. She could vaguely see Caroline mirroring her quizzical gaze on the two men.

The air in the living room was thick and filled with so much tension that Elena was surprised anyone could still breathe. She knew something was wrong when she saw Damon's eyes widening in what... shock? Or was it surprise, horror? Fear even? She couldn't tell.

Stefan's face was displaying another kind of emotions. Something close to a combination of wonder and despair mixed with resentment and anger but still with an ounce of happiness. She could almost see a big interrogation symbol on his face.

"Damon?" Stefan repeated himself. "Damon is that you?"

"Stefan?" Caroline asked all of the sudden. The concern was obvious on her face. "Do you know each other?" She made a step toward him.

But Stefan was completely ignoring her. Instead, he made a step toward Damon.

"It's me. It's Stefan! Don't you recognize me?" He stressed.

"Okay. What's going on, here?" Elena demanded her gaze once again shifting between the two men. "How do you know each other?"

Damon closed his eyes and inwardly cursed. That wasn't how he had planned to tell her everything. He had wanted to sit with her. He had wanted to explain everything to her entirely taking his time. But now he couldn't. She would learn the truth on a harsher way. A way that probably would mean he was going to lose her... The thought pained him more than anything.

He slowly opened his blue orbs feeling all eyes on him. The blonde girl with her hands on her hips was glaring at him suspiciously. Elena, his sweet angel, was looking at him with concern and the sandy blond man was staring at him expectantly.

"Hello... brother..." He finally answered.

"What!" Caroline screeched with a high pitch voice.

"Brother?" Elena whispered dumbstruck.

Stefan was in front of Damon in two quick strides and he gripped his shoulders before pulling him in a strong brotherly hug and Elena and Caroline exchanged a surprised look. Stefan patted Damon's back before letting go of his brother.

"I can't believe it's you." Stefan said. "It's been so long!" His eyes were wide with a myriad of emotions in them.

"I know..." Damon barely whispered looking down.

"I know?" Stefan repeated in stupor. "Is that all you have to say to me?" His voice was becoming edgy. "I know?"

Damon sighed before staring back at his younger brother. "What more can I say?"

"How about you tell me everything?" Stefan said. "How about you tell me why you left ten years ago? How about you tell me why you never even gave me any news in those ten years? Where did you go? What did you do?" He was throwing question after question at an overwhelmed Damon without giving him time to answer him.

It was obvious to Elena that Damon wasn't ready to answer some of Stefan's questions. She remembered the conversation she and Damon had about his past; about his deceased mother and his difficult relationship with his father. She remembered him talking about his father kicking him out for refusing to follow his steps and to become a surgeon. Giuseppe was a surgeon... She knew this man was cold and often judgmental but she never thought he could be this insensitive.

"Stefan," She said slowly. "I think you need to calm down a little and let him explain himself."

The younger Salvatore shot his head toward her. He looked angry.

"And you," He glared coldly at her. "Why didn't you tell me?" Stefan snapped. "I thought we were friends!"

Elena was taken aback by her friend's tone. She never saw him like this. He was usually so calm and restrained.

"Don't take this out on her." Damon snapped back.

"Hey!" Caroline jumped in. "Don't yell at him! You're the one who left! You're the one who abandoned your family!"

Damon could have laughed if the situation wasn't already awful enough. That blonde didn't know what she was babbling about. He didn't abandon his family. His family let him down... Of course this was only about their father. He did leave his brother alone after all... and never came back. Maybe it was true. Maybe he had abandoned his younger brother.

"Care!" Elena told appalled.

"What?" The blonde was near of being furious. "Stefan's right, Elena. I could you not tell us?"

Elena closed her eyes and ran a hand in her long brown tresses. How could she explain that until this moment she didn't know herself who was Damon? When she opened them again she could see the pain on Stefan's face. She felt guilty instantly even if none of this was her fault.

"Caroline," She sighed. "I think this is something Damon and Stefan should discuss without us around." Elena said slowly. "And I think we need to talk too."

The blonde crossed her arms on her chest before sending burning daggers at Damon with her hard glare and Elena wanted to roll hers. However, she decided against it. Making Caroline angrier wasn't an option right now. Elena knew how much of a fury her friend could become when she felt someone she loved was hurt.

Caroline looked at Stefan searching for an answer on his face. He nodded subtly letting her know he was okay with the idea.

"Fine!" She finally told her friend. "Let's go in the kitchen. I have a few words to say to you."

Caroline left the living room sending a last glare at Damon. Elena looked at Stefan who was trying to ignore her. With another sigh, she turned around and faced Damon. His hands were fisted each sides of his body and he was also trying to avoid looking at her. Elena knew the brothers were avoiding her for different reasons. Stefan was angry with her and Damon almost looked ashamed of himself.

Elena put her hand on Damon's fisted one and gave him a light squeeze. Their gaze locked together and she gave him an encouraging smile.

"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me." She whispered and his eyes widened.

With a last glance at Stefan, Elena left the two brothers alone in her living room. The silence filled the air once again and the two brothers were facing each other.

"So, are you going to say something or not?" Stefan asked sitting on the couch.

* * *

><p>Caroline was waiting for her in the kitchen with her hands on her hips. Elena swallowed hard as she walked past her friend and grabbed a mug. She had her back at Caroline but she could feel her friend's eyes burning holes in the back of her head.<p>

"Do you want coffee?" Elena offered her friend.

"I don't want your stupid coffee, Elena. I want you to tell me what the fuck is going on with you!"

Elena gasped at the harshness in Caroline's voice. She was literally pissed off. Elena was sure of it. She took a deep breath for courage and then she turned around to face her friend.

"It's a long story, Care." Elena said looking away.

"I don't care if it's a long story or not. At this point I've got all night so start talking."

"I don't know how much I can tell you."

"What is that suppose to mean?" Caroline asked. "You better tell me everything."

"Caroline, I... I didn't know he was Stefan's brother. I swear to you I didn't know."

"That's ridiculous, Elena. How could you not know? Didn't his last name ring any bells in that head of yours?"

"I didn't know his last name." She mumbled in a whisper.

"What did you say?"

"I said I didn't know his last name."

Caroline frowned. "But isn't he the friend you told me about? The one who stays with you for a while?"

Elena nodded looking away. She could feel the heat on her cheeks.

"You don't make any sense, Elena. You told me it was an old friend. You must have known his last name for God's sakes.

"I told you it was a long story." Her voice started to crack.

Caroline's frown deepened and she went to stand in front of her friend. "Elena? What's wrong?"

"I swear I didn't know, Care. I swear."

Caroline wrapped her arms around her friend and pulled her into a hug.

"Hey... shhs," She stroked her back. "It's okay. I believe you. But you need to tell me what is going on."

Elena pulled out of her friend's embrace and nodded.

"I met Damon this last weekend."

Caroline frowned but didn't comment. She waited for Elena to continue.

"It all started with my idea for my new article. I wanted to do something special."

"Okay," Caroline said. "But I don't understand where Damon fit in any of this."

Elena sighed. "I wanted to write about the homeless. Write about how they survive in the streets. Write about how people are supposedly more generous during the Christmas holiday."

"I still don't understand."

Elena cleared her throat. "I decided to go undercover... in the streets." Elena mumbled. "For the weekend."

"You what!" Caroline almost screamed. "Are you crazy?"

* * *

><p>Damon ran nervously a hand in his hair before he went to sit next to his brother on the couch. He knew Stefan deserved some explanations but he really wanted to talk to Elena first. So in this moment, Damon decided he would tell the basic story to his brother, talk to Elena and then, just then, he would tell everything to Stefan.<p>

"So?" Stefan was still waiting.

"I don't know what to say, Stefan."

"Just tell me why you left."

Damon sighed. "I didn't leave... not exactly."

"What are you saying?"

"Dad threw me out, Stefan. He kicked me out of the house." He replied with a quiet tone.

"What! No... That's impossible. Dad wouldn't..." Stefan looked at Damon with wide eyes. "What did you do?"

Damon scoffed. Of course this would be his fault. Stefan always had been blind to their father's preference for him.

"I just refused to be what he wanted me to be."

"What?"

"He wanted me to follow his steps but I wouldn't."

"Dad wouldn't do that, Damon." The younger brother frowned deeply. "I didn't become a surgeon either and he respected my choice. He always did."

Damon laughed coldly. "Of course he did, Stefan." He said bitterly. "You chose something prestigious enough for him. Something to make him proud. You were always his favorite. Dad worshiped every single one of your steps.

"That's not true."

"Please don't." Damon said. "You know perfectly well that it's true. You were always Saint Stefan while I was good at nothing Damon. I was only disappointment to him and nothing more."

Stefan sighed. "I know you and dad never got along. But for him, to do that? To kick you out?" He closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Well, he did." Damon looked away.

"I'm sorry." Stefan said.

Damon looked surprised. "Why? It wasn't your fault."

The two brothers remained silent for a while. Stefan put his hand on his brother's shoulder and squeezed it.

"You could have let me know you were alright. I was so worried about you. I even thought you were dead at some point."

"I know I should have. I'm sorry."

Stefan squeezed Damon's shoulder again.

"God, I have so many questions for you."

"I know, Stefan. I know."

* * *

><p>"Oh my God!" Caroline brought her hands to her face. "Oh my God, oh my God!" She was almost shaking. "He saved you?" She grabbed her friend tightly and hugged her again. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God." She was chanting.<p>

"He did." She answered simply.

She didn't tell her he was homeless though. She told her he was just passing in front of the alley when she was being assaulted and he had helped her. She knew Caroline would tell everything to Stefan and Elena didn't know just how much Damon would tell his brother tonight. _His brother_. God that sounded weird, almost impossible, she thought.

"Oh my God..." The blonde said for the umpteenth times.

"I had to help him. He wouldn't go to the hospital." Elena closed her eyes and shivered at the bad memories. "I had to do something, Caroline."

She always had wondered why he insisted so much in not going to the hospital. It was now clear to her that Giuseppe had a big role in this. Damon probably didn't want to take the risk to face his father like this. Not that the man would have recognized his own son the way he looked like that night.

"Of course, Elena." Caroline rubbed her hands on her friend's arms in comfort. "How about you? Are you okay?" She asked full of concern.

"Yeah... I'm fine." She attempted to smile.

"I hope you went to the police."

Elena turned around to pour some coffee in her mug.

"Elena? You went to the police?"

She looked at her friend and shook her head slightly.

"Damn it, Elena!" Caroline punched the counter making her friend jumped in the process. "You have to go to the police. Those scumbags have to pay for what they did!" Caroline was appalled. "Why didn't you go to the police?"

"I didn't have the time..." She said looking away.

"Elena..."

"Look, Care." She cut her friend off. "Damon was hurt. Badly. He needed help. I wanted to help him first. Helping him was all I could think about that night." She took a deep breath. "The next morning I didn't feel good so I went to the hospital. Luckily I have no concussion and I'll be fine."

"Okay, okay. I get it. I understand you wanted to help him. And I'm more than glad that you're okay. But I really think you should go to the police with this. Let me call my mom for you." Caroline was already picking her phone from her bag.

Elena knew her friend was right. She should have gone to the police by now. Those men needed to be arrested and the sooner the better. She had to make sure they wouldn't attack anyone else. There was just so much stuff going on at the same time... She didn't on what to focus first.

"Not now, Caroline. Please. I... there's so much things going on right now. And Damon... I just..."

"Oh my God! You like him." Caroline exclaimed.

"What?"

"Oh I know what this is!" She claimed seriousness in her voice. "It's the Stockholm syndrome! I've heard about this."

Elena laughed a little. "Caroline, that's not it at all. Stockholm syndrome is when a victim starts having feelings for her captor. That's not the point at all."

"Whatever." Caroline huffed. "But you like him..."

Elena bit her lip and shrugged. Did she like him? She had slept with him after all. Yes she liked him, but was it only because he saved her? It was so sudden...

"Caroline... I have something else to tell you."

* * *

><p>"What did you do, all this time?" Stefan asked his brother. "Where did you go?"<p>

Damon shrugged. "Here and there." He looked away before settling his eyes on his brother again. "At first I lived with friends but eventually they left for university and stuff. They went on with their lives while all I did was partying and mess up to annoy dad. I was just waiting to be eighteen to get my inheritance from mom and be free."

"That's it?" Stefan's voice sounded harsh and hurt. "You took your share and left?"

Damon understood the pain in Stefan's voice because explained the way he just did, his words sounded really selfish.

"I admit that's what I wanted... at first." Damon told. "I didn't plan to leave, at least not you. All I wanted was my money so I could be free of dad. He, however, didn't agree with this plan."

"What do you mean?"

"Dad," He paused. "He took my money from me. I had nothing."

"No," Stefan shook his head. "I can't believe dad would do this."

Damon wanted to laugh at the look of disgust and disbelief on his brother's face. Stefan had always only seen the best and good side of their father since he was born. He never had had to face Giuseppe's wrath. If must have been a shock for him to hear the truth from his brother. Damon almost felt sorry for him.

"What did you do after that?"

What did he do? How much could he tell him? He really wanted to talk to Elena first.

"A little bit of everything. You know... Nothing that dad would approve of." He tried to smile.

Stefan sighed and ran both hands in his hair.

"You're not giving much, you know."

"I know and I'm sorry, Stefan." Damon said sincerely.

"How do you know Elena? Where did you meet? How come she didn't know we are brother?"

Damon wondered how he could explain the truth to his brother. God if only he could talk with her in this moment. He couldn't picture himself announcing to his brother that his friend was attacked in a dark alley at night. What if Elena didn't want Stefan to know? She should be the one telling this if she wanted to. It wasn't his place, at least not in his mind.

"I really think you should ask her that question."

Stefan sighed deeply for the hundredth times tonight.

"Are you going to actually answer some of my questions, Damon?"

* * *

><p>Elena gave a nervous look at the brothers in the living room from where she was standing in the kitchen. They were still talking and seemed oblivious of the blonde fury that was with her.<p>

"Damn it, Elena! Since when is your middle name Stupid?" She asked.

"Excuse me?"

"Elena, you don't have unprotected sex with strangers." Caroline whispered yelled. "Even if they're hot as hell!" She added.

"I know!" Elena hissed back.

"Then why didn't you use any?" Her hands were on her hips.

Elena ran a hand in her long hair.

"I didn't think, okay. Things went so fast... neither of us thought clearly. We just... acted."

Caroline shook her head. "I can't judge you, Elena. I've had a few one night stands myself before I met Stefan. I know how you can be attracted to someone instantly. I know how strong a sudden desire can be and how powerful lust can be." She sighed. "But please, be careful."

"I know, Care. Trust me it won't happen again."

"God I hope you at least took the morning after pill."

Elena blinked a few time. Oh God, she thought for herself. She_ was_ stupid. The pill didn't even cross her mind. A light blush appeared on her cheeks.

"You didn't either?" She almost yelled. "Fuck, Elena. You're supposed to be the smarter one! Even twelve years old know about this!"

Elena face went livid. How could she forget about the simplest of solution?

"I... I forgot..." She stammered.

Caroline's eyes almost budged out of her head.

"You what?"

Elena rubbed her temples with her eyes closed.

"Caroline... I know I acted stupidly. I just... with everything that happened these last few days..."

"This is not an excuse, Elena. What if you're pregnant? I mean... I'm sure Damon is a great guy. He saved you after all... but do you see yourself having a kid with someone you don't know?"

"You're right... I should take the pill..."

Caroline looked at her watch. "The drugstore is still open. You want me to go get one for you?"

Elena only nodded. She had tears in her eyes.

"Hey..." Caroline said soothingly and hugged her. "It's going to be alright."

Elena hugged her back. "Thank you."

"What are friends for, huh?"

Caroline let go of her friend before leaving by the back door.

"I'll be back soon."

* * *

><p>About thirty minutes later, the four of them were all in the living room. They were all standing on their feet and Caroline and Stefan were ready to go home. There were so many things that hadn't been said yet, but the brothers promised to meet again the next day at The Grill.<p>

Stefan hugged Elena. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"It's okay." She hugged him back. "I think we were all in shock. That's all."

He smiled at her. "Still... I didn't have to be so harsh."

Elena giggled lightly. "Don't worry about it."

Stefan let go of Elena and hugged his brother again.

"It was good seeing you again, bro. You have no idea. Please... just don't leave again without any news."

"I won't." Damon choked.

He could see the blonde young woman smiling at him over his brother's shoulder and he frowned. That was a change from the daggers she had thrown at him earlier.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" Stefan asked.

"Yes. At the Grill."

"Great!" Stefan smiled.

They all walked to the door and before Stefan and Caroline left, she surprised everyone by hugging Damon tightly.

"Thank you..." She whispered in his ear before letting him go.

After they said their final goodbyes and Caroline and Stefan left, Elena pressed her back on the door she just closed. Damon stood awkwardly in front of her. She made a few steps toward him.

"So... You're a Salvatore..." She said more than she asked and he nodded.

Elena took his hand and walked them slowly upstairs in her room.

"Is that what you wanted to tell me earlier?" Elena asked.

He watched her entering the bathroom while he waited near her bed. He didn't know what to do. He didn't even know what he was doing in her room.

"It was part of what I wanted to tell you?" He finally replied.

She came out of the bathroom wearing a pair of flannel shorts and a tank top. She looked beautiful.

"Cute pjs" He smiled.

Elena smiled lightly and with a roll of her eyes she walked to him.

"You mean that there's more?" She asked softly.

He sighed. "A lot more." He began. "I'm not-"

He was cut by her forefinger on his lips.

"Can we have this talk tomorrow? I don't want any more drama tonight."

"Elena I really need to tell you."

"Tomorrow, Damon Salvatore." She smiled after saying his full name. "Right now... I just want to go to bed and I want you to hug me all night."

Damon wanted nothing more than to go to bed with her but it felt wrong. He knew he should insist into talking to her. But when he looked into her doe eyes he knew he would do anything she wanted. So he went to bed with her.

* * *

><p>AN: I just want to thank everyone that has read, reviewed, favorite or alerted this story. I hope I replied to all of you. If you posted your review as a guest and I couldn't reply to you, then this note is for you. If I forgot to reply to a review, then I'm sorry and this note is for you as well. Thank you! So much!

Now, a lot of you mentioned the morning after pill to me in your reviews for the last chapter and pointed the fact that it was the simplest of solution for Elena instead of just waiting. Personally, I agree with you. Elena should've thought about the pill; she was a little stupid in the last chapter. However, I still decided to make her forget about it and have Caroline chide her for it in this chapter...

Don't worry. Damon's secret WILL be reveal soon!

Please review :)

Eve xo

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. L.J. Smith, Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson do.


	12. Chapter 12

You Gave Shelter To My Homeless Heart

~Chapter 12~

* * *

><p>Damon's eyes were glued to the ceiling. Once again he just couldn't sleep. His mind was way too busy playing and replaying the mess his life was. He would have spent the night tossing and turning if Elena's warm body wasn't curled comfortably on his side with her head on his shoulder. Her breath was softly blowing on his neck and his chin rested on the crown of her head. One of his arms was wrapped around her and his fingers were playing softly in her hair while his other hand rested on his stomach.<p>

He couldn't believe everything that happened within the last week. What was the chance of him coming face to face with his brother like that? The fact that Stefan and Elena were friends was almost too much of a coincidence to take in. Now many other questions swirled in his head. How did they meet? When? Did she know his father?

Elena turned on her side freeing him from her grip and he instantly missed her touch. With a sigh, he turned his head to the nightstand where he saw a book. He extended his arm to pick it up. If he couldn't sleep he might as well do something. He took a look at Elena to check that she was still asleep before switching on the lamp next to him. He sat up in the bed and waited a little to make sure he didn't wake her up.

When he was sure she was still sound asleep, he opened the book and started reading. It was written by a mysterious author named Elizabeth. The story was about a young man leaving everything he had to go to Africa. He continued reading with the hope this story would keep his mind busy.

He felt the mattress shift beside him and he heard a soft sigh. Elena rolled on her other side and her eyes fluttered before scrunching closed because of the light. She opened them again slowly and she gazed at the man next to her.

"I'm sorry," He said quickly and made a move to switch off the lamp. "I didn't want to wake you."

"It's okay. The light doesn't bother me." She sat up and her back rested against the headboard mirroring his position. "You couldn't sleep?" She asked.

"No..."

"A lot happened, huh?"

He scoffed once. "You can say that."

Elena remained silent for a while. She reached for his hand and squeezed it in hers.

"It must have been a shock for you." She said.

Damon nodded as a silent answer and intertwined their fingers. His eyes searched for hers and all he could find was compassion and kindness.

"Did you know Stefan lived here?" She asked. "Is that why you came to Mystic Falls?"

"Yes... No... I knew they lived here," He paused. "But I was just passing by. I didn't come for them."

"Is... that why you didn't want to go to the hospital? You were afraid Giuseppe would see you?"

He ran a hand in his tousled hair.

"My dad was the main reason, of course. But most of all... "He paused. "Hospitals bring back the memories of my mother's sickness; the memory of her death and everything that happened afterward. It's one the place I hate the most." He tried to smile. "You must think I'm crazy, huh?"

Elena understood how he felt. She could relate to him in some ways. After the death of her father and the coma her mother was in, Elena had felt her whole world had crashed apart. Miranda was still alive but there were days Elena felt her mother was dead and with the constant visits at the institute she was placed, Elena wasn't a fan of hospital either.

"You're not crazy, Damon. To be honest, I hate hospitals too."

He seemed to understand her as well.

"How's your mother? If I may ask."

"She's... fine, I guess. I went to visit her a few days ago. It's hard seeing her like that... so vulnerable and weak. She used to be so full of life. Now she's just sleeping... all the time. I'm sure she hates it."

"I'm sorry Elena." He brushed a strand of hair from her face and gently tucked it behind her ear. The slight touch made his fingers tingled. "I didn't want to make you sad."

She leaned her cheek on his hand and wrapped hers around his wrist.

"It's okay, Damon. I'm alright."

Their hands dropped on the mattress and they enjoyed the silence. It was something they did often since they had met. To just be with each other and let the comforting silence enveloping them. It was a nice feeling for both of them.

"So, I guess Giuseppe doesn't know you're here?" She broke the silence.

Damon let out a sad laugh. "Nope."

"Do you want to see him?"

"I know I should, but to be honest; not really. I have nothing to say to him. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't want anything to do with me anyway."

Elena didn't insist. She didn't want to push him. Instead, she pointed to the book he had on his lap.

"I love that book!" She told him changing the topic of their conversation.

"Really? I just started it." He said. "It looks interesting."

"Oh, it is!" She said with an enthusiastic voice. "You'll love it! I'm sure. I love the way she writes her story. I wish I could meet this author but no one knows who she is."

"How come no one knows who she is? Isn't it weird?"

"Apparently, the author prefers to be unknown."

"That's really intriguing."

"Or it's just a marketing strategy." She shrugged. "All that mystery around her... That was good on the selling. Apparently she sold about 25 million copies all around the world. They even want to make a movie out of this."

"Really?"

"Yep" She popped the 'p' before giggling softly.

Damon stared at the beautiful woman next to him. The sound of her laugh was always a comfort to him. She was soothing by doing nothing at all. Since they had met, he could feel a deep connection between the two of them, like there was an understanding of some sort. This was something he had never felt before... ever. It was like being with her was as easy as it was to breathe.

"Elena... We really need to talk." He put the book back on the nightstand.

She sighed. "I know. But can it wait until tomorrow?" She asked him.

"It's almost 4 in the morning. Technically, we are tomorrow." He tried to joke but nervousness rose in him.

"When I said tomorrow, I was thinking we could talk after breakfast or even after your shift at The Grill."

"I'd really love that we could talk before I see my brother again."

She frowned. "Why?"

"There are things you don't know about me. Things I want to tell you... before it's too late. I wasn't completely honest with you."

"I know."

"You know?" He sounded surprised.

"I had my doubts. When you told me about your story the other day, I knew you weren't telling me everything."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because you didn't have to, Damon. I was still a stranger to you. You didn't have to tell me anything in the first place. You still don't."

"Yes I have."

She rolled her eyes playfully. "Fine, what is it? Are you a serial killer? Are you going to kill me in my sleeps and hide my body in the garden and steal my cats?"

"Well... Your cats are adorable." Damon chuckled. "But I can promise you that I'm not a killer. Not that I would say if I was... But no, I'm not a psychopath."

"Then that's all I need to know for now."

"Elena."

She silenced him by putting two fingers on his lips.

"Later, Damon. There is something I need to tell you too."

"Funny when I say this I'm not allowed to say anything." He said against the fingers that were still on his lips.

"My house, my rules, Mister Salvatore." She giggled.

"I see." He scoffed playfully.

Elena became serious again and her hands dropped on her lap.

"It's about what we've talked earlier." She began. "About us not using protection."

Damon nodded and stared nervously at her. He was waiting for her to continue.

"I... I can't believe I didn't think of it."

"Elena, I'm responsible too."

"No, no. That's not what I meant. In fact, it's Caroline that brought it up earlier."

"You told Caroline?" He looked surprised.

She shrugged. "Girl talk... I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize, Elena."

"So, what I was going to say is that after being chastised by my friend for not thinking of it, she reminded me that I could have just taken the pill."

"And you took it." It wasn't a question; it was more of a statement.

"You know?"

He looked uneasy almost ashamed. "I saw the box in your trash can in the bathroom." He admitted.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"I felt it was your decision, Elena. A lot more than mine. I can understand why you wouldn't want to have a baby with someone who is still a stranger to you."

"It's not that I don't want a baby with you, Damon." She saw his eyes widening. "I'm not saying I want one either." She said quickly not wanting to scare him away. "I just don't think it's a great time for me to have a baby. There are still a lot going on in my life right now. My mom, my job, the aggression, you..." She paused. "You're not that much of a stranger, Damon. I mean, we don't know each other for long but... I don't see you as a stranger."

"I don't know what to say."

"Then say nothing."

"Will it work?" He asked after a moment. "You know, since you didn't take it this morning."

"The pill?" She asked and he nodded.

"It would have been best if I thought about it this morning, yes. The sooner you take it the better, but it's effective when taken within 72 hours. So, yeah... It should work." She shrugged. "I don't think I could have been pregnant, but," She bit her lip. "Maybe it's better if I don't take any chances."

"Okay."

"I hope you're not mad at me... for not telling you before I took it."

"Why would I be? Elena, like said, it's your decision more than mine."

If he was honest though, Damon felt like all the pressure of the world was just taken from his shoulders. He would have been there for her and the baby as much as he could have been but having a baby was never a part of his plan.

When their eyes met again she leant closer to him and dropped a light kiss on his lips.

"Thank you." She said.

"What for?" He whispered.

"Understanding..."

"I just think you took the best decision." He admitted. "I mean...I would have been there for you if you ever got pregnant, but..."

She cut him off by kissing him again gently.

"I know, Damon."

He gazed at her with wide eyes when she cupped his face.

"Elena." He warned in a whisper when she closed the distance between them again.

Her lips brushed against his and he hesitantly responded to the soft erotic caress. Their kiss slowly became more demanding and more urgent. Damon knew he should stop it. He still needed to talk to her but he found it very difficult to stop her when she crawled on his lap to straddle him and her hands were fisted in his hair.

Damon groaned when she bit on his lip and suddenly her tongue was swirling deliciously around his. His heart was racing and his entire bloodstream was heading south. He had to use all of his remaining self-control and willpower to break the kiss but he did. He pulled away panting and breathless.

"We have to stop this." He breathed.

She dropped her forehead to his.

"Why?" She was panting too. "I know you want me. I can feel it" She pressed her core on his erection.

"Elena." He groaned.

"I want you too." She murmured on his lips.

"And I want you too. I want you like I've never wanted anyone else."

"What's the problem, then?" She trailed soft kisses on his jaw and his neck. "Is it the condoms?" She sucked on his ear lobe. "Because this time we can use them..." She kissed his lips. "They're in my nightstand."

"I won't touch you like that again until we've talked."

"Why?"

"Because when we do, I don't want you to think I took advantage of you."

She pulled away from him a little. What did he mean? Took advantage of her? How? She couldn't understand why he was saying things like that.

"Damon... I can promise you that I'm very willing right now." She went to kiss him again but he gently pushed her back.

"Elena... Please, don't" He was begging.

She huffed. "You know, you're the first man I met who's begging to _not _have sex." She pouted.

He chuckled. "Trust me. Saying no to you is killing me."

"Then say yes..." She whispered.

Damon exhaled loudly. "I can't..."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Can I at least have my goodnight kiss?"

He ran his thumb on her bottom lip. "I think I can manage that."

With a smile she leant down and he reached for her sweet lips. The kiss was sweet and soft. Her hands were in his hair and he rolled them over so she was now underneath him. He rested his forehead on hers and her hand skimmed down on his sides to finally stop on his waist.

"Damon?"

"Hmm?" He rubbed his nose against hers.

"Would you read my article before I hand it to my boss? I'd love to have your approval."

He rolled on his side next to her and brushed the hair from her face.

"My approval?"

"Yeah..."

"Anything for you..."

She yawned. "Thank you." She mumbled and her eyes struggled to stay open.

"You're welcome." He kissed her cheek. "Go back to sleep, you look tired." He said softly.

"Goodnight." She mumbled in another yawn.

"Goodnight, Elena."

* * *

><p>Elena was watching intently as Damon was reading her article. She was really nervous about it and getting his opinion was really important to her. She was pacing in the kitchen and she was biting her nails. Her heart skipped a beat when he frowned and looked up to watch her before he kept reading.<p>

Once he finished reading he put the paper she had printed for him on the table and his blue eyes searched for her brown gaze. He gave her a little smile.

"I loved it, Elena."

She stopped pacing and crossed her arms on her chest nervously.

"Are you sure? Do you want me to change something?"

"You don't have to change anything. I think it's perfect."

"Are you sure?" She asked again. "I mean... I'm not mentioning your name but it's a small town... People will eventually know."

"I don't care what people think, Elena. Don't change anything."

"Okay." She said relieved.

"I have to leave for The Grill."

"Of course. I don't want to make you late."

"And tonight we'll talk." He told her.

"Yes, Damon. Tonight we'll talk."

She walked to him and hugged him before kissing softly.

"Have a nice day at work. I'll see you later with Stefan and Caroline."

"Have a nice day too, Elena."

He kissed her cheek and then he was gone.

Elena was sitting in front of her computer and decided to reread her work a last time before emailing it to Elijah.

_Mystic Falls, the good and the bad, by Elena Gilbert_

_Have you noticed? There is something in the air. The weather is chillier, the children chirpier. Everybody seems to be in a better mood. Everybody seems to be happier. Everybody seems to be nicer. It's always the same this time of year. Have you guessed? Yes! It's going to be Christmas soon!_

_You're probably already thinking about all the festivities coming your way. You're probably wrapping the kids' gifts while they're asleep. You're decorating the family tree. You're getting ready for parties and celebrations. You might have spent too much money over futilities and last minute gifts like we all do each year. I bet right now you're feeling generous. But are you really?_

_Lately, I've spent a lot of time at the homeless refuge, here, in Mystic Falls. I wondered how hard it was for those less fortunate in life especially during this special time of year. I wanted to write about them, for them. I wanted to know what it felt like. Could you imagine yourself, not only alone and abandoned to yourself, but to have absolutely nothing. Nothing to keep you warm, nothing to eat... Nothing..._

_To be honest, I wanted to put our beautiful town to the test. We never cease to claim ourselves good and generous. This town always praised itself to be the best. Are we all those things? I can already hear your answers. 'Yes we are!'_

_You want the ugly truth? We. Are. Not. Is my answer surprising you? I bet it is. Now, let me explain._

_I first visited the homeless refuge a few times where I've talked to the manager, to the volunteers and helpers. I've talked to many homeless men and a few women and they told me about the difficult time they're in. _

_I could have written this article based only on these interviews but I wanted to do something more than that. I wanted to put myself in their shoes. I wanted to understand what they have to live through every single day. I wanted to live it. And that's what I did... for a few hours._

_Did you notice there was a new lady on your street asking for money? Well, that was actually me. I had put my undercover disguise and went in the streets. My first idea was to spend the entire weekend there. I lasted only five hours..._

_The first thing that hit me the most was the indifference of mostly everyone. The majority of people were walking in front of me as I wasn't even there, like it was so much easier to ignore me and pretend I wasn't there. As for the ones that had dared look my way, they did it with so much judgment and disgust that it felt like I was slapped in the face. I got yelled at, I got insults most of the time. A bunch of teenagers had thrown chips at me. A 'gentleman' threw me a condom... Yes dear citizens of Mystic Falls; that's how good we are._

_Okay, enough with the bad. Don't you agree? Because there are good people in our town; I swear!_

_I had lost all hope in our town until I met this nice woman who bought me a sandwich and a coffee. I wish to this woman all the best in the world. I also want to thank the minority of you who gave me money. I made a very big five dollars in five hours!_

_I also owe my life to a man who had risked his life to save mine. When I was testing our town in the cold night, I was attacked by four drunken men. I honestly thought I was going to die... until this nice homeless man came to my rescue. He was severely injured trying to save me even though he could have just walked away._

_I wanted to help him. I had to, I needed to. So I took him into my home. And that was the best decision I ever made. I discovered an exceptional man that just needed a little help to get his life back._

_I'm not saying we should all open our homes to just anybody. But please... next time you cross someone in need... Don't ignore them. If you can't help with money, just smile or say hi. Don't ignore them just because it's easier this way. Most of them are more worthy than any of us._

Elena stared at her screen. As usual, she was never completely happy with her writing but she decided it was time for her to send it to Elijah. She had Damon's approval and that was the most important thing for her. After one more minute of hesitation she clicked on the sending icon. Now, all she had to do was to wait for her boss' approval.

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><p>When Elena arrived at The Grill, she immediately spotted Stefan and Caroline at a table in the middle of the place. The couple were occupied in what seemed to be a deep conversation and they didn't see her coming. When Caroline's eyes finally looked up and met hers, Elena waved at them while walking toward their table.<p>

"Hey," She said sitting down.

"Elena..." Stefan said quietly. "Caroline told me everything... Are you okay?"

Elena gave a quick glance at her blonde friend before looking back at Stefan.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Thank God, Damon was there..." He shook his head in disgust. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Stefan. I'm fine. I'll be forever grateful to Damon for saving my life."

"What about him? Was he hurt?" Stefan's worried voice made her smile a little.

"He was but he's okay now. We're both fine."

"You know," Stefan began. "It all makes sense now."

"What does?" Caroline asked him as Elena frowned.

"Last night... When I asked him how you two knew each other. He said I should ask you first, Elena. He didn't want to tell me. I guess he didn't know how much you wanted to tell us..."

"I wasn't sure myself, to be honest."

Stefan nodded and suddenly he looked around him nervously.

"Speaking of Damon; where is he? He didn't go again, did he?" Stefan tried to control the panic in his voice.

"He's probably in the kitchen." Elena reassured him.

"What? Really?" Stefan frowned. "Why?"

"Long story short, he's replacing Charlie."

"Really?" Stefan repeated.

"Yes he is." Elena smiled.

"That's... great." He said.

"So, he's the hot new cook Vicky was babbling about." Caroline jumped in giggling.

Elena was about to answer when Damon arrived next to their table and sat down next to her.

"Hi." He said quietly as all eyes were on him once again.

"Hi!" Stefan said with a huge smile on his face. "Elena was just telling us you were working here. That's great!"

Damon looked down at his hands on his lap. Being with his brother was making him uncomfortable. He still hadn't had the talk he wanted to have with Elena and he knew his brother would have more questions about his past.

"This is just a replacement. It's temporary. You know, until Charlie comes back."

"I heard you were good! Maybe they'll keep you."

Damon didn't know what to answer to that. Compliments weren't something he had received very often in his life and especially in the last two years.

"Maybe..." He shrugged.

Elena's hand subtly covered his under the table giving him comfort. Since the start she always had been there for him and deep down he felt like he didn't deserve it. He couldn't wait to tell her the truth even if it meant he could be losing her.

A waitress arrived with their coffees and she smiled flirtatiously at Damon when she took their orders. Elena couldn't help the glare of jealousy she sent her and she didn't even realized how her hand just held his tighter. Damon frowned and Caroline giggled.

"Well, Damon. You sure are popular among the waitress." She laughed again.

Damon shrugged. "I haven't noticed."

Caroline wriggled her perfectly shaped eyes brows. "Really? Because someone else did." She winked at Elena who kicked her under the table.

"Ouch."Stefan hissed. "What was that for?"

"Sorry, Stefan." Elena muttered and Caroline bit back her laughter.

The waitress came back with their burgers and fries and she made sure to take her time when she gave Damon his plate flaunting her generous cleavage to his eyes. Once again Elena felt the pang of jealousy building in her body and she fought the urge to throw her burger at the waitress.

"Caroline told me... about what you did for Elena." Stefan broke Elena's thoughts.

Damon paused with the burgers in front of his mouth and put it back on his plate.

"It's nothing, really."

"It's not nothing, Damon. You saved my friend's life and you risked yours."

Damon didn't reply. Instead he started eating his fries.

"I couldn't just stay there and do nothing. I had to help." He said after a while.

"To me," Elena glued her eyes to his. "It was everything." She whispered.

Stefan and Caroline exchanged a knowing look and a smile as they noticed the closeness between the two persons in front of them. It was obvious to them that there was something going on between their friend and Stefan's brother.

The four of them kept eating and talking of everything and anything. Damon was grateful to Stefan for not asking too many questions about his past. In fact Stefan was telling him about his life, his work and how he had met Caroline through Elena. Damon was glad for his youngest brother's happiness. He really was.

Suddenly he watched Caroline's face changing. She was chitchatting and smiling with Elena and in one second her face fell. She was looking above his head, near The Grill's entry. Not long after that Stefan mirrored her expression. Elena turned around to see what was happening but Damon refused to move. Somehow he knew.

"Damon..." A cold voice came from behind him.

"Father..." Damon replied with the same cold voice not bothering to turn around.

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><p>AN: Just taking a minute to once again thank you all for the reviews you left me last chapter. I really tried to reply to everyone. If I didn't then I thank you here. Thank you! Thank you! For your time, for reading and reviewing. I really felt the love you guys and I really appreciated it. Please let me know what you thought of this one. :)

Eve xo

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><p>Twitter: titeve79<p>

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><p><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. I'm only borrowing the characters.


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